Predawn search at Abhishek's residence triggers political storm; TMC alleges 'political vendetta'

The TMC on Saturday strongly condemned the police search at party MP Abhishek Banerjee's Kalighat residence, alleging that the operation was part of a campaign of political vendetta against its leaders by West Bengal's BJP government. In a dramatic pre-dawn operation that triggered a fresh political storm in West Bengal, police personnel, accompanied by central forces, searched Banerjee's Kalighat residence in connection with an alleged financial fraud, officials said.

The operation, led by a team from Paschim Medinipur's Salboni Police Station and assisted by Kolkata Police personnel, began shortly after 3 am and continued for more than four hours, prompting former chief minister Mamata Banerjee to reach the Diamond Harbour MP's house. In a post on X, the TMC said, "Political vendetta gets from bad to worse." Several party leaders echoed the charge, accusing the state government of misusing investigative agencies to target the Diamond Harbour MP.

TMC Rajya Sabha MP Sagarika Ghose, in a strongly-worded post on X, detailed the sequence of events during the pre-dawn operation at Banerjee's residence. She claimed that police arrived at the Kalighat house around 3 am and that a disaster management team was subsequently brought in to break open locks before the search commenced. Ghose said the search covered areas "from the second floor to the terrace", and lasted for about 90 minutes. She further claimed that the seizure report prepared after the operation recorded "NIL", alleging that investigators found no incriminating material. "No evidence. No wrongdoing. NOTHING," she wrote. The Rajya Sabha MP alleged that the operation amounted to "political vendetta, intimidation and mental torture" and claimed that leaders refusing to submit to the BJP were being selectively targeted. Describing the episode as a "disgraceful attack on an opposition leader", Ghose accused the ruling party at the Centre of employing "vindictive" tactics against its political opponents.

The TMC has repeatedly alleged that central and state investigative agencies are being used to harass opposition leaders, a charge rejected by the BJP, which maintains that agencies function independently and act on the basis of evidence. Saturday's search at Banerjee's residence triggered a fresh round of political confrontation in the state, with the opposition party projecting it as another instance of alleged political targeting of its senior leaders.