Kolkata: A war of words between Trinamool Congress general secretary and Diamond Harbour MP Abhishek Banerjee and West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari escalated on Friday, October 30, a day after Banerjee publicly warned state police officers against acting under political direction, news agency IANS reported.
Addressing a gathering on Thursday evening, Banerjee alleged that officers were framing Trinamool workers in false cases under orders from the state government. "I am warning every officer who thinks that they will work at the behest of Suvendu Adhikari. When the government changes, no one will save them. No one is above the law," he said, according to IANS. The allegations against the police are Banerjee's claims and have not been independently established.
Banerjee also attacked the handling of probes by the Enforcement Directorate, the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Kolkata Police, and raised the October 17 Chorbagan Durga Puja pandal stampede, in which 19 people died, news agency ANI reported. He alleged that police had targeted minor players while failing to arrest top Puja committee office-bearers, ANI said. A six-member Special Investigation Team headed by retired High Court Justice Anindita Roy Saraswati is investigating negligence in the stampede case.
Responding near a city hotel in Kolkata on Friday, Adhikari, without directly naming Banerjee, said investigating authorities were uncovering critical information from Banerjee's former personal assistant, Sumit Roy, who was recently questioned by police, IANS reported. Adhikari claimed Banerjee's outburst stemmed from panic over those revelations — a claim Banerjee's party has not been reported as accepting.
"There is a problem with his sodium-potassium level. He should go to New York for treatment. We will grant him an NOC (No Objection Certificate)," Adhikari said, according to IANS.
The exchange comes amid months of parallel investigations and political tension in West Bengal following the Chorbagan tragedy and corruption inquiries. Neither side announced any formal complaint or legal step over the remarks in the reports reviewed.