Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court on Sunday ordered a status quo on the demolition of Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee’s Diamond Harbour constituency office located at Amtala in West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas district. Justice Raja Basu Chowdhury, holding a special emergency sitting of the court, directed the state government to place all case records and relevant documents concerning the structure before the court for a thorough judicial evaluation. The interim protection ensures that all further anti-encroachment activities at the site remain suspended until the end of July, after which the matter will be taken up by a regular bench.
The legal intervention followed an urgent writ petition moved by Leaps and Bounds Private Limited, the firm that reportedly owns the five-storey property on Diamond Harbour Road. Abhishek Banerjee serves as the chief executive officer of the corporate entity, a detail previously highlighted by the Enforcement Directorate during investigations into an unrelated matter. During the special hearing, the senior counsel representing the petitioner argued that the local administration had acted in complete violation of statutory procedures and the principles of natural justice. The defense submitted that the demolition was launched abruptly without serving a final order or providing the property owner with a fair opportunity to respond to the municipal allegations.
The local administrative crackdown commenced on Saturday morning when the South 24 Parganas district authorities deployed three bulldozers to dismantle the structure. District officials maintained that the extensive enforcement drive was initiated after internal surveys revealed that the multi-storey facility had been constructed without an approved building plan and in direct violation of regional zoning guidelines. Police and administrative personnel cordoned off the area to remove laptops, official files, and office equipment before starting the partial demolition. Conversely, the Diamond Harbour MP strongly rejected the allegations of illegal construction, asserting that the office was built on legally purchased land with all requisite administrative permissions, while condemning the state’s action as a politically motivated vendetta.
