The Calcutta High Court on Monday directed the West Bengal government to give an undertaking that CISF personnel deployed for security at R G Kar Medical College and Hospital will be shifted from the premises of Pei May Chinese School in Kolkata by April 30, 2026.
Justice Krishna Rao passed the direction after the state submitted that alternative accommodation for the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) jawans would be arranged within that timeframe and the school premises would be vacated accordingly.
The Pei May Chinese language school, located in the city’s China Town area, had moved the High Court seeking a direction for removal of CISF personnel housed in 18 rooms of its building, stating that classes could not resume and the premises were also required for celebration of the Chinese New Year on February 17.
A special officer appointed by the court informed the bench that eight out of the 18 rooms had already been handed back to the school authorities to facilitate the festival.
Counsel for the Union of India submitted that around 130 CISF personnel had been staying in the school building for over a year. Following the temporary handover of eight rooms, the jawans were confined to the remaining 10 rooms, with some forced to sleep in the verandah due to lack of space.
The Union sought permission for the CISF to continue using the eight rooms temporarily after the Chinese New Year celebrations until the state made alternative arrangements.
Additional Advocate General Amal Kumar Sen, appearing for the West Bengal government, informed the court that steps would be taken to shift the CISF personnel to an alternative location by April 30.
Recording the submission, Justice Rao directed the state to file an affidavit by way of undertaking confirming that necessary arrangements would be made and that the school premises would be vacated by the said date.
The CISF was deployed at R G Kar Medical College and Hospital pursuant to a Supreme Court order following the rape and murder of an on-duty postgraduate trainee doctor on August 9, 2024.
The personnel had been accommodated at the Pei May Chinese School from September 2024, initially for a period of two months, which later continued, prompting the school management to seek judicial intervention for restoration of its premises.
