SC likely to take up homeguards' arrears petition today

KOLKATA: A contempt petition challenging the state government’s reluctance to clear the dues of Border Wing Home Guards is expected to come up before the Supreme Court on Monday.
The state finance department is reportedly sitting over the file though the apex court had ruled that dues will have to be cleared by February 12. The apex court had ordered that arrears of nearly Rs 25 crore (in salary and allowances) — accumulated over two decades — would be reimbursed by the Centre within two months.
The state finance department has, however, not made clear its intentions.An official said they would await the Supreme Court directive as the cash-strapped government is not in a position to pay such a hefty sum.
The Border Wing Home Guards (BWHG) Co-ordination Committee secretary Subrata Banerjee said: “The state government’s silence despite the court directive tantamounts to contempt. We are moving the Supreme Court seeking redressal on Monday. The government has not given any timeframe either if at all it wants to clear the dues,� Banerjee said.
On July 7, 2003, the apex court had directed the state government to do the needful. On another appeal by the government, the apex court gave it another two months to comply with its directives. Banerjee said the apex court had then observed that the state would attract contempt if it failed to meet the deadline.
The state’s dithering on the matter has left the 900-odd BWHGs in the lurch. Banerjee said: “The state does not have to pay on its own. The court order clearly states that the Centre would reimburse it. Several of our colleagues have either died or sought retirement in this turmoil.�
Inducted in 1978, the BWHGs worked along with the BSF to stop cross-border infiltration and smuggling till 1999. This apart, they were also entrusted with the responsibility to ensure the safety of the telecommunication equipment along the border.