Attack on ED officials: Will take constitutional action, says West Bengal governor

West Bengal governor C.V. Ananda Bose on Friday condemned the attack on the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) team, which attempted to raid Trinamool Congress leader Sheikh Sajahan’s residence at Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district, and said he will take appropriate action as per Constitutional provisions against the attackers.

“It is the responsibility of the state government to prevent such barbaric acts. But in case the state government fails to initiate action as per its responsibilities, right steps as per the Constitutional provisions will be taken at the right time,” the governor said.

He also issued a note of caution to the state government to be "ready to face consequences" if the latter fails to fulfill its constitutional responsibilities.

“The state government should take responsibility in preventing such barbaric acts. The state government should understand the ground-level realities, or else it should be ready to face the consequences,” the governor said.

His statement comes after Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay of Calcutta High Court observed that the Constitutional structure in West Bengal is collapsing and also questioned why the governor was not issuing a statement in the matter.

The ED officers were attacked by alleged loyalists of the TMC leader during the raid, triggering a political showdown, with opposition parties vociferously demanding the imposition of President's rule and the governor signalling his intent to explore constitutional options and take appropriate action.

According to information, three officers who were injured in the attack have been hospitalised in Kolkata. The head injuries to one of the three officers, Rajkumar Ram, are said to be serious. A medical team also carried out a CT scan on Ram for other internal injuries if any, while he received a few stitches to his head.

The two other ED officials, who are admitted in the same hospital, have been identified as Ankur Dutta and Somnath Dutta.

Meanwhile, the state BJP has characterised the incident in Sandeshkhali as a "direct assault on the federal structure", leading to an urgent call from the Congress for the imposition of President's rule.

The ruling TMC, however, rejected the charges and accused the central agency officials of "inciting locals".