Bengal police grill BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari's brother over 'irregularities' in civic body

Soumendu Adhikari, the younger brother of BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari, was questioned by the West Bengal Police for around ten hours in connection with its probe into alleged irregularities in some projects under Contai Municipality, an officer said on Saturday.

According to police, alleged anomalies in the projects occurred when Soumendu was the chairman of the civic body.

Soumendu, a former TMC leader and the two-time chairman of the Purba Medinipur district's second most populous municipality, had switched over to the BJP last year, just months ahead of the assembly polls.

It was alleged that irregularities in the construction of stalls in a crematorium and the stealing of tarpaulins took place, while he, as a member of his former party, was the chairman of the municipal body.

"He was questioned yesterday in connection with alleged irregularities that happened during his tenure as chairman. He will soon be summoned again," the police officer said.

Terming the allegations as baseless, Soumendu said this was "nothing but political vendetta as I belong to the opposition camp".

TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh wondered why the BJP leader was so worried if he had not committed any wrongdoing.

"If he has committed no wrong, why is he so worried? They should first explain whether the probes by the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate against TMC leaders are part of political vendetta or not," Ghosh said.

Published on: Saturday, October 08, 2022, 04:56 PM IST