Kolkata, Aug 21 The Calcutta High Court on Friday granted interim protection to TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee from coercive police action in three FIRs lodged against him at different police stations in South 24 Parganas district.
Banerjee challenged the three criminal prosecutions -- two at the Bishnupur and one at the Rabindranagar police stations in South 24 Parganas district in July.
Justice Saugata Bhattacharyya directed that no coercive steps be taken against Banerjee in connection with the three FIRs in this petition till September 11.
Justice Bhattacharyya said that since three other criminal prosecutions pending against Banerjee are questioned in a different petition, the order for which is scheduled to be delivered on August 25 by this court, the hearing of this petition stands adjourned till September 7.
The court directed that the protection order will not prevent police authorities from carrying out the investigation.
The court had already granted protection to Banerjee in the earlier three FIRs and in an FIR before the Bidhannagar police cyber crime cell.
The court was earlier informed that 16 FIRs are registered against Banerjee at different police stations.
On a plea by Additional Advocate General Rajdeep Majumdar that protection not be given to Banerjee before hearing the prosecution in these three FIRs, the court said it has been hearing several petitions by the TMC MP challenging FIRs against him in different police stations lodged from May this year.
Majumdar claimed that Banerjee is a highly influential person and it was not possible for the complainants to lodge police cases earlier.
The BJP came to power in May, defeating the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government, which governed West Bengal for 15 years from 2011.
The Diamond Harbour MP is the national general secretary of TMC and nephew of the former chief minister.
