West Bengal Government Reopens High-Profile Cases Including 2021 Poll Violence and RG Kar Murder

The BJP government in West Bengal has reopened the 2021 post-election violence cases and the 2024 RG Kar rape-murder investigation because the previous regime systematically distinguished culprits by their political affiliations, allowing police action to be dictated by the identity of the victims rather than the severity of the crime (Indian Express). Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has described this shift as moving from the "law of the ruler" to the "rule of the law," beginning with a comprehensive review of every case linked to the 2021 Assembly elections (Indian Express). The administration has signaled this is only the start, with the 2025 schoolgirl bomb blast death among several high-profile cases now back on the radar to dismantle years of institutional cover-ups (Indian Express).

The BJP government's claim of transitioning to "rule of law" rings hollow when the very first cases selected for review are exclusively those that target political opponents, while violence involving their own cadres remains untouched. Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari's assertion that the previous regime distinguished culprits by political affiliation describes the exact template his administration is now replicating in reverse, using state machinery to settle scores rather than deliver justice. If the intent were genuinely institutional, the review would be chronological and comprehensive, not a curated list of high-profile flashpoints that serve an electoral narrative. The inclusion of the 2025 schoolgirl bomb blast death alongside political violence cases further blurs the line between criminal investigation and political theatre.

The Opposition claims the case selection targets only political opponents, yet the reopened docket includes the 2025 schoolgirl bomb blast and the RG Kar rape-murder—neither of which implicates the Opposition's leadership (Indian Express). [internal contradiction] They argue a genuine review would be "chronological and comprehensive," but the government explicitly stated the 2021 election violence review was only the first decision, with several high-profile cases still on the radar (Indian Express). Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari's mandate is to correct a system where police action was "heavily influenced by political identity of victims" (Indian Express); investigating the cases that regime buried is the necessary starting point, not evidence of vendetta.

The BJP's defence rests on a false equivalence: the RG Kar case implicates institutional failure under their own watch, and the schoolgirl's death is a criminal tragedy they are now parading as proof of neutrality while the 2021 docket remains a curated weapon against one party. [internal contradiction] They cite the government's promise of "several high-profile cases on the radar" as evidence of breadth, but that open-ended language is precisely how selective prosecution is sustained—announce a wide net, then haul in only the political catch. Adhikari's mandate to correct a system where police action was "heavily influenced by political identity of victims" (Indian Express) is being fulfilled by replicating the same distortion in reverse, ensuring justice remains a function of who holds power.