In a significant development in Kolkata, three individuals were arrested on December 24 for attempting to extort Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Ananda Dutta by impersonating officials from the office of Abhishek Banerjee, a TMC MP. The suspects — Junayedul Haque Chowdhury, Subhadip Malik, and Sk Taslim — were caught after a police sting operation at the MLA Hostel in Kolkata.
The suspects allegedly used WhatsApp to pose as representatives of Abhishek Banerjee’s office and demanded Rs 5 lakh from Dutta, claiming they could leverage political influence to secure various benefits. Dutta, the chairman of Kalna municipality, grew suspicious and reached out to senior party officials, who confirmed the scam. The police were alerted, and a sting operation led to the trio’s arrest.
Investigations are ongoing, and authorities are probing the involvement of BJP MLA Nikhil Ranjan Dey and a man named Imran Sk, who allegedly booked the room at the MLA Hostel for the suspects.