The Kolkata High Court has sought a detailed report from the police on temporary bookstalls proposed by the Left in the Bangaon-Naihati and Jessore areas during Durga Puja, including details of permissions, construction work and the role of the Public Works Department.
Justice Sougat Bhattacharyya directed the police to submit the report by Thursday. The report must state how many stalls are being set up, whether work on the temporary structures has begun and whether permission has been obtained from the Public Works Department, according to the court proceedings reported by Sangbad Pratidin.
The case was heard after the Communist Party of India (Marxist) approached the court, alleging that permission had not been granted for its temporary bookstalls this year. The party claimed that such stalls had been set up in the area for several years during the Durga Puja period, but that the police had declined permission on this occasion.
The petitioners also alleged that another organisation, identified in the proceedings as the Hindu Jagaran Manch, had been allowed to construct a temporary structure at the same location. The dispute has therefore raised questions about the basis on which temporary structures are permitted in public areas during a major festival and which authority is responsible for granting approval.
During the hearing, Justice Bhattacharyya questioned why bookstalls should not be allowed if balloon and toy-gun stalls could operate at the same location. The judge was quoted as asking whether the proposed structure was a lottery shop or a bookshop, and what difficulty there could be in allowing it.
The observations came as the court examined the competing claims about access to public space during the festival. The CPI(M)’s lawyer told the court that bookstalls had been permitted in the area for many years and that the refusal this year had come without an apparent explanation. The lawyer also referred to the alleged permission granted to the other organisation.
Appearing for the state, Advocate General Surjit Nath Mitra said the CPI(M) had applied to the subdivisional officer for permission. He argued that the land belonged to the Public Works Department and questioned how the subdivisional officer could authorise a temporary stall there. According to the state’s submission, the application should instead have been made to the Public Works Department.
The court has now sought information that could clarify the administrative process, including which organisations have received permission from the Public Works Department to install bookstalls. The police have been asked to provide the details in their report by Thursday, after which the matter is expected to be considered further.
