Kolkata: Amid the controversy over Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee’s wife being allegedly detained by the Customs officials for checking at Kolkata’s NSCBI Airport recently, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday alleged an FIR filed by the Customs in the case was not accepted by the Bidhannagar Police.
While Banerjee has called the allegations baseless, the incident has sparked a stand-off between the central agency and the local police.
Banerjee, a nephew of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, also threatened to file criminal and civil defamation suits against the right wing portals carrying the report and opposition leaders tweeting on the issue.
The BJP has also accused the state police of not allowing the Customs authorities to follow the standard operating procedure at the Kolkata airport.
BJP Rajya Sabha member Swapan Dasgupta has alleged two women passengers, Rujira Narula and Menka Gambhir, possessing Thai passport had arrived at the Kolkata airport on a Thai Airways flight from Bangkok in the wee hours of March 16.
“The two women refused to let Customs officials check their check-in baggage. One of them was the wife of Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee. Later, the police intervened and the two left for home,” Dasgupta alleged.
“Many standard operating procedures have not been followed. Was it a result of intimidation? The Customs tried to lodge an FIR on March 22 but the police refused to register it. We have not been able to know the reasons behind the police refusing to register the FIR. The CCTV footages of the incident should be made public,” Dasgupta said.
He said the Custom’s FIR, which was not accepted by the police, suggested that there was “interference, obstruction and criminal intimidation”.
“Why were public officials obstructed from carrying out their legitimate duty? I do not get into whether any costumes jewellery or any gold was found from the two passengers or what were the details of their passports,” he said.