The Supreme Court verdict upholding the powers of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) will have far-reaching implications, according to Prakash Karat, CPI(M) Polit Bureau member.
The Centre would be able to crush democratic and citizen’s rights through the apex court’s decision, he said in his inaugural address at a meeting organised by the EMS Study and Research Centre here on Thursday demanding the release of activist Teesta Setalvad and former IPS officers R.B. Sreekumar and Sanjiv Bhatt from police custody.
Mr. Karat said that the ED’s action against human rights activists and mediapersons will intensify in the wake of the Supreme Court order.
The Gujarat Police had taken Ms. Setalvad, Mr. Bhatt and Mr. Sreekumar into custody on the basis of the recent judgement of the Supreme Court in the post-Godhra riots.
The apex court’s decision to uphold the ED’s unbridled powers to arrest and even making bail nearly impossible would have far-reaching implications, he said.
Mr. Karat alleged that the Centre was exerting pressure on the judiciary, including the Supreme Court collegium. The judiciary has to be free from such interferences and must work on the basis of the provisions laid out in the Indian Constitution. The BJP continues to silence all its critics using brute force. The suspension of the Members of Parliament belonging to the Opposition was also part of this agenda, he said.
