The West Bengal Crime Investigation Department (CID) has summoned the Leader of Opposition withinside the state meet, Suvendu Adhikari, to seem earlier than it on Monday in reference to the alleged suicide of his security guard in 2018, officers acquainted with the matter stated on Saturday.
The development comes days after chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s nephew and Trinamool Congress MP, Abhishek Banerjee, was summoned to appear before the ED on Monday in an alleged money laundering case related to coal smuggling. The Diamond Harbour MP’s spouse, Rujira Banerjee, too, was earlier requested to appear before the corporation in New Delhi on September 1.
While Adhikari didn’t reply to calls and messages for a comment, a Bharatiya Janata Party spokesperson termed the notice “vendetta politics”. Protégé-turned-adversary Adhikari had defeated Mamata Banerjee from Nandigram by a slender margin of 1,956 votes withinside the recently-concluded meeting elections.
“When the security guard died, Adhikari was a minister withinside the TMC government. Back then he was God. Now that he has joined the BJP, and has defeated Mamata Banerjee, he has become a demon. The TMC isn't always being able to digest the defeat of Mamata Banerjee. This is not anything but vendetta politics,” stated Samik Bhattacharya, BJP spokesperson.
Earlier in July, a four-member CID delegation visited Purba Medinipur to probe into the death of Adhikari’s security guard who reportedly died by suicide in October 2018. According to the police, the deceased allegedly shot himself with his service revolver.
In July, after the TMC came to power for the third time, the victim’s spouse lodged a three-page complaint with the nearby police in the East Midnapore district demanding a fresh probe into her husband’s death.
“BJP is constantly resorting to vindictive politics. The way, Abhishek Banerjee and some others are being attacked withinside the name of investigation, people of West Bengal won’t accept it. It has been proved that such steps aren't above vindictive politics,” Partha Chatterjee, state minister and Trinamool Congress’ secretary-general had informed the media whilst ED had summoned the CM’s nephew.