State lawyer defends her decision

Monalisa Chaudhuri, TT, Calcutta, Dec. 12: Sarbani Roy, the special public prosecutor in the Park Street gang rape case, today stood by her decision of not seeking life imprisonment for the three men held guilty.

Speaking exclusively to The Telegraph at her Behala home, she said their age and "the circumstances under which the crime had been committed" had prompted her not to seek the maximum punishment.

The 69-year-old public prosecutor has been criticised for saying in her last submission yesterday that there was "no need for life imprisonment" as the trio - Naser Khan, 31, Ruman Khan, 28, and Sumit Bajaj, 24, - were "not directly involved in the commission of the offence".

Her statement - an apparent deviation from a public prosecutor's conventional stand to seek the highest punishment - had prompted state law minister Chandrima Bhattacharya to announce Roy's removal from the state panel of lawyers last night.

The additional district sessions judge of fast track court II sentenced Naser Khan, 31, Ruman Khan, 28, and Sumit Bajaj, 24, to 10 years' imprisonment, which is the minimum punishment for gang rape.

Roy said she never asked for minimum punishment. "I said there is no need for higher punishment. By higher punishment, I meant life imprisonment. I meant the sentence could have been anything between 10 years and life imprisonment."

Roy has been the special public prosecutor (PP) during the case's trial over the past three-and-a-half years.

"I did not seek their life imprisonment considering their age and circumstances," she said.

Roy, who had been inducted into the state government's panel of lawyers in 2011, also distinguished the role of a public prosecutor from that of other lawyers, especially a defence lawyer.

"Unlike a defence lawyer whose sole responsibility is to defend his client, the primary responsibility of a public prosecutor is to uphold justice," she said. "According to Supreme Court guidelines, in addition to seeking justice for the victim, a public prosecutor has to ensure that the accused do not face any injustice."

Amit Sen, former dean of law at Calcutta University, said a public prosecutor generally demanded the maximum punishment.

"Also, in the new definition of gang rape, everyone is equally responsible. If Kadir Khan, who is absconding, is caught, the PP will seek maximum punishment since he is the prime accused," Sen said. "Then why seek a lesser punishment for the others when everyone is equally responsible for the gang rape."

Roy's submission in court had prompted a fast reaction from law minister Bhattacharya, who went on to say that the special PP "was not instructed by the state to make such a statement". The minister had called it the prosecutor's personal opinion.

Today, Roy agreed with Bhattacharya but only on one count - what she had said in court yesterday was her personal opinion.

Roy said each of the three had specific roles, which is why separate charges had been pressed against them.

"There is no law that binds a special public prosecutor to consult the government or any minister before making a submission in the court," she said. "The trial has been underway for three-and-a-half years. No one from the state ever enquired about the progress. So, how does the question of consultation arise?"

She said she had not received any letter till today evening informing her that she has been removed from the state panel of lawyers.

"I am not aware of the procedure of removal of a special PP. The governor appointed me. So, I expect a showcause notice from the governor's office asking why I made that specific submission... that is, if at all I have been removed."

Roy stressed that she would remain "very much a part of the state panel of lawyers" till she received any official communication.

"There is no question of stepping down. I will continue working for the case for which I have been appointed as the special PP till I receive any official communication," she said.

Law minister Bhattacharya told The Telegraph that she did not want to comment on the matter. "Let her (Roy) say whatever she wants. I am not going to say anything."

The lawyer is currently special PP in several cases, for which trial is underway. Another very high-profile case in which Roy is the special PP is the death of more than 174 people in South 24-Parganas' Mograhat in 2011 from drinking spurious liquor.