Kolkata, 13 August (H.S.) : A complaint has been lodged against Trinamool Congress national general secretary and Diamond Harbour MP Abhishek Banerjee in connection with an alleged attack on West Bengal BJP president Shamik Bhattacharya in 2020. The complaint was submitted at Diamond Harbour Police Station in South 24 Parganas by Abhijit Das alias Bobby, who has sought action in the matter.

In a separate development, a Krishnanagar court has directed the police to conduct an investigation into allegations of illegal excavation and sale of soil from government land in Nadia and Murshidabad. The complaint names Abhishek Banerjee and 29 others.

In his 10-page complaint addressed to the Inspector-in-Charge of Diamond Harbour Police Station, Bobby alleged that Shamik Bhattacharya and his associates were attacked in a planned manner on October 6, 2020, while they were travelling towards Diamond Harbour. The complainant alleged that the attack was carried out at the direction of Abhishek Banerjee.

Besides Abhishek Banerjee, the complaint names 78 other individuals, including Jahangir Khan, Sumit Rai, Gautam Adhikari and Shamim Ahmed.

Bobby stated that the Bishnupur Police Station was informed about the incident after the alleged attack. However, he alleged that the police failed to take appropriate action at the time. A copy of the complaint has also been sent to the Superintendent of Police of the Diamond Harbour Police District.

Meanwhile, the Krishnanagar court has ordered a police investigation into allegations of illegal excavation and sale of soil and cutting of trees from government land. According to the court proceedings, Kaliganj resident Bapan Ghosh had filed the complaint on July 15.

The complaint alleges that since 2016, large-scale excavation and sale of soil had been carried out from around 33,000 bighas of government and vested land spread across Kaliganj block in Nadia and the Shaktipur area of Murshidabad.

The complainant has further alleged that several valuable trees standing on government land were also felled. According to him, a substantial amount of money was generated through the alleged illegal sale of soil and trees, and he has alleged the direct involvement and patronage of Abhishek Banerjee in the matter.

The complaint names 30 people, including Abhishek Banerjee, sitting Trinamool Congress MLA from Kaliganj Alifa Ahmed and former MLA Hasnuzzaman Sheikh.

According to the complainant's lawyer, Shirshendu Das, written complaints were submitted several times to the Forest Department and local police authorities regarding the alleged excavation of soil and cutting of trees, but no effective action was taken. He also alleged that the complainant was threatened with death.

After considering the documents and submissions, the Krishnanagar court directed the police to conduct a detailed investigation to establish the facts of the case.

Bapan Ghosh said he had been fighting for a long time to protect government land from alleged illegal encroachment and to safeguard the environment. He said the court's order had strengthened his faith in the justice system.

However, Trinamool Congress MLA Alifa Ahmed dismissed the allegations as a political conspiracy. She alleged that the case had been filed with the intention of tarnishing the image of the party.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh