Joint commissioner to oversee Saraswati Puja celebration at a south Calcutta college
Telegraph | 2 February 2025
The high court on Friday intervened in a Saraswati Puja celebration at a south Calcutta college and ordered that the puja be held under the supervision of a joint commissioner of police.
The order came on a petition filed by students at Jogesh Chandra Chaudhuri Law College, on Prince Anwar Shah Road, alleging that some "outsiders" were preventing them from organising the puja.
The students alleged that the “outsiders”, who had been driven out of the college for misappropriating funds collected for Saraswati Puja two years back, were forcefully entering the campus and preventing them from holding the puja.
Justice Jay Sengupta, who heard the matter, ordered that the puja at the college be held under the supervision of a police officer of the rank of joint commissioner.
"If the situation demands, the police can deploy armed forces during the puja,” the judge stated in the order.
Justice Sengupta also ordered Charu Market police station, under whose jurisdiction is the college, to ensure that not a single “unwanted person” enters the campus.
The “outsiders” — who are mostly former students — have also erected a pandal on the college campus. The court ordered that the structure be pulled down.
"The Charu Market police will have to demolish the pandal erected by the alleged outsiders by noon tomorrow," Justice Sengupta said.
The judge said that like previous years, students of the day and night sections of the college can organise Saraswati Puja separately.
The court also directed the police to videograph the puja and submit a compliance report on February 5.
Moving the petition on behalf of the students, advocate Saptangshu Basu said: "Years back, Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay, a former judge of this court, had identified some students engaged in unlawful activities at the college and asked the college authorities to rusticate them. Accordingly, the students were driven out of the college.”
The lawyer added: “Even though they were driven out, they entered college premises. Now these fellows are trying to hold the puja and are threatening the present students."
Appearing for the students in the day section, advocate Arka Sen submitted that the principal has limited power in maintaining law and order on the campus.
"This is the duty of the local police station. These boys, during their tenure, had allegedly snatched the amount collected from a teacher... who was appointed by the college authorities to supervise the puja,” the lawyer submitted.
State counsel Sirsanya Bandyopadhyay said: "This puja has been held for 50 years. When I was a student, I organised Saraswati Puja as the secretary elected by the students.”
After hearing all sides, the judge issued the order.