KOLKATA: A 17-member team of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of West Bengal Police on Tuesday visited TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee's Kalighat residence-cum-office as part of its investigation into the alleged forged signatures of MLAs in the controversy surrounding the election of Sovandeb Chattopadhyay as Leader of the Opposition in the Trinamool legislature party in the West Bengal Assembly.
Officials of the state investigating agency, accompanied by personnel from Kalighat police station and a large contingent of women police personnel, arrived at the premises at 30B Harish Chatterjee Street around noon.
Mamata, who was in Delhi to attend an INDIA bloc meeting to chalk out a nationwide strategy against the BJP, was expected to return to Kolkata on Tuesday. However, it was not immediately known whether she had returned.
According to CID officials present at the spot, the visit was based on a reply submitted by Trinamool Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee to an earlier notice issued by the agency.
"In his response, Abhishek Banerjee stated that signatures of MLAs were collected at the party's central office at 30B Harish Chatterjee Street. Based on that statement, we have come here as part of the investigation," a CID officer said.
Initially, the investigating team was prevented from entering the premises, leading to a brief standoff with security personnel posted at the complex.
TMC leader and former MP Subhasish Chakraborty said the party had objected to the search in the absence of Abhishek Banerjee. "We have not allowed the CID to enter the premises in the absence of Abhishek Banerjee. Once he comes, the CID can come and search the house," Chakraborty told reporters.
Meanwhile, Abhishek Banerjee, who has been served multiple notices by the CID over the past 10 days, is scheduled to appear before investigators at the state police headquarters, Bhabani Bhavan, in Kolkata later on Tuesday.
Abhishek, who had travelled to Delhi on Saturday to attend the INDIA bloc meeting, had not yet returned to Kolkata.
The CID had issued notices to Abhishek Banerjee to examine his alleged links to the signature forgery case. The agency's latest move comes days after it sought information related to the alleged forging of legislators' signatures on a proposal submitted to the Assembly Speaker seeking recognition of the Leader of the Opposition.
The controversy erupted after a proposal sent to the Speaker seeking recognition of senior TMC MLA Sovandeb Chattopadhyay as Leader of the Opposition allegedly contained forged signatures of several legislators, leading to the registration of an FIR and a CID probe.
The case has unfolded amid an unprecedented split within the TMC. The crisis began with a dispute over the selection of the Leader of the Opposition after the Assembly elections and escalated when 58 of the party's 80 MLAs backed expelled MLA Ritabrata Banerjee for the post instead of the leadership's nominee, Sovandeb Chattopadhyay.
Last week, the rebel camp took control of the legislature party, elected Ritabrata Banerjee as Leader of the Opposition and secured recognition from the Assembly Speaker, resulting in the first split in the TMC since its formation in 1998.
