In a dramatic pre-dawn operation that triggered a fresh political storm in West Bengal, police personnel, accompanied by central forces, conducted a raid at TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee’s residence in Kolkata on Saturday (June 13, 2026) 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 a.m. and continued for more than four hours, triggering sharp reactions from the TMC.
The sudden police action prompted former Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee to rush to Mr. Abhishek’s residence after being informed about the development.
According to the police, officers repeatedly knocked on the doors of Banerjee’s Kalighat residence but received no response.
The TMC alleged that the police personnel broke open a lock and entered the premises to carry out the search operation.
Coming out of the house later, Mr. Banerjee alleged that police personnel had forcibly entered the residence after breaking open a lock and searched the entire premises.
“They broke the lock and searched the entire house,” he told reporters.
The premises in Kalighat’s Patuapara area remained heavily guarded throughout the operation, with central forces cordoning off the neighbourhood while personnel from Kalighat and Bhabanipur police stations assisted the search team.
Police officers said the search was linked to an ongoing investigation into a financial fraud case registered at Salboni Police Station in Paschim Medinipur district. However, they declined to disclose further details about the nature of the allegations or the specific evidence being sought.
According to the authorities concerned, the police were searching for the TMC MP’s personal assistant in connection with the ongoing investigation.
Police sources said personnel, including women officers, participated in the search. At one point during the operation, some officers briefly stepped out of the residence for discussions before re-entering and continuing the exercise.
As news of the search spread, Ms. Banerjee rushed to the residence and remained there for a considerable period, closely monitoring developments. Her arrival heightened political activity in the area, with TMC workers and supporters gathering near the house.
The police personnel left Mr. Banerjee’s house this morning, but it was not immediately known whether any documents or materials were seized during the search.
The development came barely two days after the West Bengal CID questioned Mr. Banerjee in connection with the alleged forged-signature case linked to the state assembly and amid a series of fresh summons issued to him by multiple investigating agencies.
Mr. Banerjee was also summoned for a second round of questioning on June 14 in connection with the alleged signature forgery case after the state CID sleuths were reportedly dissatisfied with his responses during questioning at the department headquarters two days ago.
The Calcutta High Court had directed Mr. Banerjee to cooperate with investigators probing the assembly signature forgery case, and observed that the CID would not take any coercive action against Banerjee for two weeks.
On Friday (June 12, 2026), CID officers again visited his Kalighat residence to serve a notice in connection with a cyber complaint lodged over certain remarks allegedly made by him. After initially finding him unavailable, investigators later handed over the notice when he returned home.
Mr. Banerjee has been asked to appear before the CID on June 16 in connection with the cyber case.
The TMC Diamond Harbour MP stated publicly that he would cooperate with both investigations.
In addition, the Enforcement Directorate has summoned him on June 15 in connection with its probe into the alleged primary school recruitment irregularities case.
TMC strongly condemns police search
The TMC on Saturday (June 13, 2026) 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 Mr. 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 a.m. 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.
Ms. 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”, Ms. 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.
Published – June 13, 2026 10:27 am IST
