Kolkata: Calcutta high court’s Justice Kausik Chanda on Wednesday recused himself from hearing West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s plea that seeks to challenge BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari’s win in Nandigram in the 2021 state elections.
Justice Chanda also imposed a fine of Rs 5 lakhs on Mamata Banerjee for the manner in which withdrawal was sought.
“Such calculative, psychological, and offensive attempt to seek recusal need to be firmly repulsed and a cost of Rs 5 lakh is imposed upon Petitioner,” said the single-judge bench of Justice Chanda.
The sum would be used to fight Covid-19 while another bench will now hear the matter.
Chanda on June 24 observed he was put on a “media trial” for his association with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) prior to judgeship as he reserved the order on Banerjee’s plea seeking his recusal.
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who appeared for Banerjee, on June 24 said there was overwhelming material to show that the judge had been “an active member of BJP” and held a “deeply personal, professional and ideological association” with the party.
Chanda expressed his displeasure that Singhvi did not cite the “likelihood of bias” when the matter first came up before his court on June 18.