Kolkata, August 17, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The Calcutta High Court on Monday extended till November 30 the interim protection from coercive police action, including arrest, granted to Trinamool Congress general secretary and Diamond Harbour Lok Sabha MP Abhishek Banerjee in a case involving alleged forgery of legislators’ signatures.
The order was passed by a single-judge bench of Justice Kaushik Chanda while hearing a petition concerning the ongoing investigation by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the West Bengal Police.
The CID is probing allegations that signatures of multiple MLAs were forged on an official document submitted to the Speaker of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly.
Appearing for the state police, Additional Advocate General Rajdeep Majumdar told the court that forensic examination had established that the signatures of three MLAs were forged.
Majumdar said the document contained signatures of 70 legislators, while complaints had been made regarding the alleged forgery of signatures of five MLAs. According to the AAG, forensic examination had so far confirmed that three of those five signatures were forged.
The state also alleged that the signature forgery had taken place in the presence of Abhishek Banerjee.
Majumdar submitted that no resolution had actually been passed on May 6, despite the document stating that a resolution had been adopted on that date. He said the MLAs were not asked to sign the resolution on May 6 and that the document was actually signed on May 19.
According to the state’s submission, a resolution written on the General Secretary’s pad and bearing the date May 6 was subsequently sent to the Assembly Speaker. Five MLAs then gave statements alleging that their signatures had been forged, Majumdar told the court, adding that the forensic report had subsequently established the forgery.
Despite the state’s submissions, the court observed at the preliminary stage that it did not find that Abhishek Banerjee appeared to be involved in the alleged signature forgery.
The interim protection from coercive action, including arrest, has now been extended until November 30.
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