Birbhum (Gurpreet Singh): Senior Trinamool Congress leader and former Deputy Speaker of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly Asish Banerjee was found dead on Sunday morning inside a party office adjacent to his residence at Hattala Para in Rampurhat, Birbhum district. Local police recovered his body hanging inside the locked premises and subsequently sent it to the Rampurhat Medical College and Hospital for a mandatory post-mortem examination.
Investigators recovered a handwritten note in Bengali from the spot, reportedly written on the former legislator’s official letterhead. In the note, Banerjee maintained his innocence regarding allegations of financial irregularities, specifically denying involvement in civic development decisions during his tenure as chairperson of the Tarapith Rampurhat Development Authority, while expressing remorse over entering politics and stating that no single individual was directly responsible for his death. Family members reported that he had participated in local Independence Day celebrations the previous day and had shown no outward signs of emotional distress.
The 75-year-old former academician from Rampurhat College was a prominent political figure in Birbhum district, representing the Rampurhat constituency for five consecutive terms spanning from 2001 to 2026. During his legislative career, he held cabinet portfolios overseeing education, agriculture, and AYUSH departments before serving as the Deputy Speaker of the state assembly.
Banerjee had recently stepped down from his position as chairman of the Trinamool Congress Birbhum district core committee in June while retaining his general party membership. Police authorities have registered a case and launched a formal inquiry to ascertain the exact sequence of events leading to his demise.
