NEW DELHI: Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee on Tuesday claimed that Bharatiya Janata Party-led West Bengal government was pursuing “political vendetta” against his party after he was questioned for nearly six hours by Kolkata Police over the removal of an unauthorised billboard.The Trinamool Congress MP from Diamond Harbour said that the Suvendu Adhikari-led government was selectively targeting TMC by removing its signboards, freezing party accounts and initiating cases against its leaders and workers.“If they think they can silence us through false cases and arrests, they are mistaken,” Abhishek Banerjee told reporters as he walked out of Shakespeare Sarani police station after questioning.“They can question me but I am not scared, they are,” he said, adding that the police action was a bid to weaken TMC.The TMC leader also alleged that several party workers arrested in connection with the incident were subjected to “custodial torture”.
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“One of our workers, Tarik, was arrested and subjected to custodial torture. He secured bail yesterday, but 12 or 13 others remain in judicial custody,” he alleged.This comes days after a confrontation broke out when Kolkata Municipal Corporation officials, accompanied by police, entered the office premises to dismantle the billboard mounted on an iron structure facing the road.Private security guards, party supporters and some TMC leaders resisted the move, leading to a scuffle with police and civic officials. Police subsequently registered three FIRs and arrested several people.Abhishek, who has been named as an accused in two of the cases, was served a notice to appear before the police and arrived at the station around 12.15 pm, as TMC supporters gathered outside and raised slogans alleging that he was being targeted by the state government.The cases include sections pertaining to obstruction of government officials in the discharge of their duties, unlawful assembly, assault and harassment of women police personnel.
