Kolkata: Trinamool Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee has been summoned by the West Bengal Police Criminal Investigation Department to appear on June 1 regarding an alleged forged-signature case linked to a letter sent to the state Assembly Secretariat.
The matter concerns a May 19 letter from the TMC nominating senior leader Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay as Leader of the Opposition. Reports indicated that some signatures on the letter did not match records held by the Assembly, prompting suspicions of forgery.
An earlier May 6 letter on the same nomination was rejected because it was not issued by the TMC legislative party as required. The May 19 submission drew scrutiny after signature inconsistencies were noted, leading to the current inquiry.
A complaint was filed at Kolkata’s Hare Street police station on behalf of the Assembly Secretariat. The case was transferred to the CID. Officers visited the Shantiniketan Building on Harish Mukherjee Road on Friday to deliver the notice but later served it at Banerjee’s Kalighat residence.
Banerjee stated he had received the notice and would seek legal advice, noting he had cooperated with agencies previously. He described the action as politically motivated.
Other TMC legislators have also been questioned. The BJP has stated that the forgery allegations are serious and not politically driven.
The summons comes alongside other issues facing Banerjee, including notices from the Kolkata Municipal Corporation regarding building plans and a recent confrontation during a visit to South 24 Parganas. The CID investigation will examine whether the signatures were forged and who was responsible for the letter.
