Ex-Mayoral aide Kalicharan Banerjee detained in Kolkata warehouse collapse probe

Kolkata, June 25 (IANS) Police on Thursday evening detained Kalicharan Banerjee, alias Kali, the then Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to former Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim, in connection with the collapse of the roof of an under-construction warehouse in the Taratala area of Kolkata.

Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari had referred to him during his address earlier in the day. Although he did not mention his full name, he said: “No plan is passed in the Kolkata Municipal Corporation unless Kali is mentioned.”

The Chief Minister also claimed in the Assembly that there was widespread corruption in the approval of various building plans within the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) area. According to him, a person known as Kali was behind the majority of such irregularities.

“Once Kali is arrested, all the information will surface. Kali used to influence KMC’s sanction plans. He is the one who is behind the construction of the Trinamool Bhavan on the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass. An FIR has been registered. We will take action and no one will be spared,” the Chief Minister said.

Following his statement, police detained Banerjee and began questioning him.

Kali is a familiar figure within the KMC and is regarded as Firhad Hakim’s “right hand”, according to civic sources. A state government employee, Kalicharan Banerjee had earlier served in the West Bengal Police before moving into the administrative service.

Firhad became the Mayor of Kolkata after the resignation of Sovan Chatterjee in late 2018, following which Kalicharan joined the KMC. Apart from serving as Firhad’s OSD, he was also the controlling officer for the MP Fund and the MLA Area Development Project. It is alleged that he became one of Firhad’s closest confidants and wielded considerable influence within the civic body. According to KMC sources, no major construction work in the city could proceed without his approval.

The roof of the under-construction warehouse that collapsed in Taratala on Wednesday had received approval from the KMC. The Chief Minister stated in the Assembly on Thursday that Firhad had signed the approval letter for the warehouse. Police are also examining the role of the civic body in the matter.

Kalicharan is being questioned in that context. Investigators are examining allegations that the design of the warehouse was faulty and that soil testing had not been conducted before construction began. Questions have been raised about how clearances were granted despite the alleged deficiencies in the design, and Banerjee is being questioned on those aspects.

So far, 11 people have died in the Taratala warehouse roof collapse and 19 others have been rescued alive. They are undergoing treatment at SSKM Hospital.

Police have so far arrested five persons in connection with the incident, four of whom were named in the FIR. It is learnt that a company named Behera Brothers had taken a 30-year lease of the warehouse land from the Kolkata Port Authority. Its owner, Shambhunath Behra, is among those arrested.

Normally, permission from the Port Authority is required for any construction activity on leased land. According to sources, the authority did not object to the construction in this case.

The Kolkata Port area also falls within Firhad’s Assembly constituency. Some local sources have alleged the existence of a syndicate system in connection with the construction of the warehouse.

–IANS

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