The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of West Bengal Police has taken steps in the signature case involving Trinamool MLAs. The CID has requested the Bankshal Court for handwriting samples from Baharul Islam, Subhashis Das, and Arup Roy, and the court has approved the request. A team led by a DIG-rank officer has been set up by the CID to assist Kolkata Police in this matter.
The CID’s involvement follows a complaint lodged at the Hare Street police station by the state Assembly secretary over alleged signature inconsistencies of Trinamool MLAs. Meanwhile, the Trinamool Congress has expelled two MLAs, Ritabrata Banerjee and Sandipan Saha, for engaging in anti-party activities. This decision was made public shortly after Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari revealed that the two expelled MLAs had filed a complaint with the Speaker about the signature forgery case.
Amid these developments, the Trinamool Congress encountered challenges in appointing key positions in the Assembly post-election. Following a meeting chaired by Mamata Banerjee on May 6, where MLAs consented to her decision-making authority, the party announced Sovandeb Chattopadhyay as Leader of the Opposition, Nayna Bandyopadhyay and Asima Patra as deputy leaders, and Firhad Hakim as Chief Whip. However, the Assembly did not accept a letter signed by Abhishek Banerjee, the party’s General Secretary, citing procedural discrepancies.
The CID, now leading the investigation, has visited the residences of several MLAs and summoned Abhishek Banerjee for questioning, which he missed due to health reasons.
