The West Bengal Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on Tuesday conducted a search at Kolkata residence of former chief minister Mamata Banerjee in relation to an investigation into the alleged forgery of signatures belonging to two Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLAs.
The search team arrived at Harish Chatterjee Street, a location that serves both as private home of Mamata and a party office for TMC.
Following a brief standoff with party representatives, CID personnel entered the premises around 4pm (local time) to carry out their operation.
During the initial confrontation, former TMC MP Subhasish Chakraborty attempted to block the investigators, arguing that the search should be postponed by a day or two until either Mamata or the party’s General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee were present.
In response, CID officials accused Subhasish of “obstructing the investigation,” clarifying that their objective was to search TMC office on-site rather than residential quarters, reports The Hindu.
Background of the forgery allegations
The probe stems from a letter dated 20 May, which nominated Sovandeb Chattopadhyay as the State Assembly’s leader of the opposition.
Two Trinamool MLAs, Ritabarta Banerjee and Sandipan Saha, alleged that their signatures on the letter had been forged; following their complaint, both were expelled from TMC. Initially registered at Hare Street police station, the case was later transferred to CID.
The agency subsequently issued several summonses to Abhishek, the signatory of the letter. While expecting at the state police headquarters by 5pm (local time) on Tuesday, he failed to appear, citing health issues and requesting a 15-day extension just before the deadline.
In a parallel move, CID investigators also visited TMC office located on Camac Street as part of the same inquiry.
Political outcry
The CID’s actions have provoked sharp criticism from Trinamool Congress, with leaders labelling it a “shameless political vendetta”. Senior advocate and MP Kalyan Banerjee, who arrived at Harish Chatterjee Street residence, accused Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari of being “vindictive”.
He pointed out that Mamata was neither named in FIR nor called as a witness, characterising the search as harassment timed for when many leaders were in Delhi.
TMC Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien further condemned the visit, suggesting it was an attempt to “loot the files” of a rival party.
Senior leader Kunal Ghosh, who was reportedly barred from entering the premises during the search, questioned why the agency chose a time when Mamata was absent.
Conversely, the State Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Agnimitra Paul defended CID’s actions, stating that the search proves “no one is above the law”.
She alleged that the former chief minister had presided over 15 years of corruption and should be held accountable for past atrocities.
“Everybody will be brought to book… she should be booked, she should be arrested,” Agnimitra stated.
