The brutal attack on seven judges and the vandalism of their vehicles in Malda has reached the Supreme Court, sparking national outrage. While the apex court condemned the incident, retired Chief Justice Debasish Kar Gupta has raised a critical question: why did the administration take eight agonizing hours to rescue the judicial officers?

The judges were reportedly at the BDO office to oversee the Voter List verification process (SIR) following reports that 22 lakh voters had been delisted in the state. An angry mob besieged the office, trapping the judges inside from the afternoon. “The administration should have been more proactive. Rescuing them at midnight is unacceptable; they should have been cleared as soon as the mob gathered,” stated Justice Gupta.

Senior Advocate Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya also lashed out at the state government, citing a complete collapse of law and order. Despite the High Court informing the Election Commission, the rescue operation by the police and central forces only succeeded after midnight. The Supreme Court has now sought an explanation for this significant delay and the security lapse that put judicial officers in grave danger.