New trouble for ‘Kalighat TMC’ as 12 more bank accounts frozen

TMC’s ‘Kalighat Trinamool’ faction landed in fresh legal trouble within 24 hours of securing partial relief from the Calcutta High Court, as state police froze 12 additional bank accounts in connection with an ongoing financial probe. The latest action follows an earlier complaint filed by a Trinamool MLA aligned with the Ritabrata camp, alleging suspicious financial transactions.

Acting on the complaint, police had initially frozen three bank accounts. With the new development, the total number of frozen accounts has now risen to 15. According to state police sources, formal requests were sent to multiple public and private sector banks to freeze the additional accounts, citing investigative purposes. The banks complied with the legal directives, suspending all transactions linked to those accounts.

Investigators claim that the 15 accounts together hold funds exceeding Rs 1,000 crore. Notices have been issued to the concerned banks seeking detailed transaction records and financial data related to the newly frozen accounts. Earlier reports indicated that the first three accounts alone contained approximately Rs 440 crore.

The ‘Kalighat Trinamool’ faction had challenged the freezing of those accounts in court. On Thursday, Justice Saugata Bhattacharyya ruled that while the accounts could be used for day-to-day operations, they would remain under judicial oversight.

As part of the interim arrangement, the High Court appointed retired Justice Subrata Talukdar as a Special Officer to monitor all financial activities linked to the three accounts until September 30. Withdrawals are permitted only with the signatures of two authorised signatories, and all expenditures must be reported and countersigned by the Special Officer.

The Ritabrata camp has opposed the High Court’s interim relief, indicating plans to move the Supreme Court by filing a writ petition challenging the order.

Meanwhile, the case has drawn the attention of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which has reportedly taken over the investigation after detecting prima facie evidence of irregular transactions. Sources suggest that the agency is probing alleged illegal deposits of large sums, often referred to as ‘cut money’.