A division bench of Calcutta High Court has extended the interim bar on Bishnupur BJP MP Saumitra Khan from entering Bankura district.
The division bench of Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Monojit Mandal on Wednesday extended the interim order they had passed in April this year. Khan’s constituency falls in Bankura.
The case will be heard again six weeks from now. The interim order was issued on a petition filed by three Bishnupur residents who alleged Khan had collected Rs 10 lakh after promising them jobs.
Khan, who was expelled from the Trinamul Congress in January, won Bishnupur without setting foot in the constituency during the campaign.
Pleading Khan’s case, advocate Subhashish Dasgupta said in the court: “There was a political motive behind implicating my client. The allegations are absolutely baseless… As an MP, Khan has the responsibility to serve the people of Bishnupur.”
Opposing Khan, public prosecutor S.S. Mukherjee said: “The Supreme Court had allowed Khan to enter the district for one day to file his nomination papers. But after entering the district, he had threatened people who had lodged a complaint against him and tried to tamper with evidence.”