Kolkata: A dramatic pre-dawn operation triggered a fresh political storm in West Bengal on Saturday as a joint team of the Kolkata Police and Paschim Medinipur Police, accompanied by central forces, conducted an extensive raid at the Kalighat residence of TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee. The search operation, which began shortly after 3:00 AM at the leader’s Patuapara residence on Kalighat Road, lasted for more than four hours, drawing sharp condemnation from the Trinamool Congress.
The overnight action prompted former chief minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee to rush to the location to monitor the situation closely, which quickly heightened political tensions and drew large crowds of party supporters to the neighbourhood. Investigating officers from the Salboni Police Station in Paschim Medinipur district, assisted by local Kalighat and Bhabanipur police personnel, reportedly arrived at the house in search of Abhishek Banerjee’s personal assistant, Sumit Roy, who is currently wanted in connection with an ongoing financial fraud investigation.
According to police sources, authorities knocked repeatedly at the gates for nearly two hours without receiving any response. The joint team eventually sought assistance from the state Disaster Management Department to break open the entrance lock to gain entry into the premises. Following the search, which covered the property from the second floor to the terrace, Abhishek Banerjee addressed reporters and alleged that the security personnel had broken open the lock to conduct a forced, room-by-room search of his entire house.
TMC leaders have strongly criticised the pre-dawn raid, describing the operation as a case of political vendetta and intimidation, while noting that the official seizure report from the raid returned no incriminating material. On the other hand, representatives from the BJP maintained that the investigative agencies were merely executing due process under the law. The raid comes at a time of escalating legal battles for Abhishek Banerjee, who was questioned by the West Bengal CID just two days prior regarding a separate signature forgery case linked to the state assembly and faces additional summons from multiple investigating agencies in the coming days.
