The Supreme Court on Monday disposed of a petition by the All India Trinamool Congress regarding the dismantling of its signboard from an office in south Kolkata, asking the party to submit all its arguments before the Calcutta High Court.
A three-judge bench consisting of Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice V Mohana granted all parties the liberty to raise their respective contentions before the high court and instructed it to adjudicate the dispute expeditiously.
Plea Against High Court Order
The political party approached the apex court following the Calcutta High Court’s refusal to grant interim relief against the removal. Representing the Trinamool Congress, senior advocate Kapil Sibal sought intervention from the Supreme Court concerning the dismantling of the billboard at 9, Camac Street, a building that houses the office of party Member of Parliament Abhishek Banerjee.
Civic Action and Prior Ruling
The dispute stems from the Kolkata Municipal Corporation pulling down an allegedly unauthorised billboard displaying party signage from the south Kolkata premises, an action conducted with police assistance.
Earlier, on August 28, the Calcutta High Court declined to issue an interim order in the petition challenging the civic body’s action. Justice Raja Basu Chowdhury noted that because the signboard had already been dismantled by the municipal corporation, there was no ground to grant interim protection at that stage.
