Rs 1-crore cash seized from rebel TMC MLA’s office in Diamond Harbour, CM Suvendu Adhikari says ‘tip of iceberg’

Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari claimed on Wednesday that former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her nephew Abhishek Banerjee were responsible for diverting state revenue to their supporters. Referring to the seizure of around Rs 1 crore from the office of Magrahat Paschim MLA Samim Ahamed, Adhikari stated that this was merely "the tip of the iceberg."

The seizure occurred during a raid at the rebel TMC MLA's party office in Diamond Harbour's Sarisha locality. The raid was a result of information obtained from Sumit Roy, an aide of Abhishek Banerjee, who is currently in police custody for alleged financial irregularities.

Adhikari alleged that the revenue, which should have been collected by the state, was instead siphoned off to TMC offices and then sent abroad. He claimed that the additional revenue collected in the current fiscal year was due to money being diverted from the state's coffers and not from new stone or sand quarries. Adhikari asserted that if the current six-month figures were extrapolated to a full year, the additional revenue could reach Rs 7,000-8,000 crore.

The CM accused the former chief minister's faction of engaging in irregularities during post-Cyclone Amphan relief efforts, corruption in the Sebashray initiative, extortion, job-for-cash schemes, and illegal occupation of government land. He threatened strict action against those responsible for the alleged wrongdoing. The Mamata Banerjee-led TMC faction accused the state government of planting evidence and fabricating information by misusing state machinery.