Calcutta High Court Grants Interim Protection To Abhishek Banerjee, Directs Cooperation In CID Probe

The Calcutta High Court has granted interim protection from coercive action to Trinamool Congress national general secretary and Diamond Harbour MP Abhishek Banerjee in connection with a CID investigation into an alleged signature forgery case linked to the West Bengal Assembly.

Hearing Banerjee’s petition, Justice Kaushik Chanda directed the Trinamool leader to cooperate fully with the investigation and appear before the Criminal Investigation Department for questioning. The court ordered that no coercive steps, including arrest, be taken against him for a period of three weeks, while allowing the CID to continue its probe in accordance with the law.

The case revolves around allegations that signatures of several Trinamool Congress MLAs were forged on a resolution submitted to the Assembly regarding the nomination of Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay as the Leader of the Opposition. The CID has been investigating the authenticity of the document and examining the circumstances under which it was prepared and submitted.

During the hearing, Banerjee’s legal team informed the court that he was willing to cooperate with investigators and comply with any lawful directions issued by the agency. Following the court’s order, Banerjee appeared before CID officials at Bhabani Bhawan for questioning.

The state government’s counsel opposed the plea, arguing that Banerjee had failed to respond to multiple notices issued by the CID. Investigators contended that custodial interrogation was necessary to recover the original resolution document and establish the chain of events surrounding the alleged forgery. The agency also cited statements from several MLAs who reportedly denied signing the document in question.

Justice Chanda observed that investigative agencies possess the authority to carry out searches and seizures as part of their inquiries. At the same time, the court noted that Banerjee’s expressed willingness to participate in the investigation justified granting interim relief. The matter is expected to come up for further hearing after three weeks.