 "TMC critic Abhijit Gangopadhyay joins BJP after quitting as HC judge")
Former Calcutta High Court judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday, two days after tendering his resignation. Gangopadhyay, a noted Trinamool Congress critic, was welcomed into the party by the Leader of the Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari and West Bengal BJP President Sukanta Majumdar, among other members.
In a press conference following his resignation, the lawyer had said on Tuesday that he would join the saffron party on March 7. "I am joining the BJP as it is a national party, which is fighting against the corruption of the TMC in Bengal," he said.
Gangopadhyay ordered CBI probe into recruitment 'scam'
Notably, Gangopadhayay was set to retire in July. One of his most prominent judgments includes ordering the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe the alleged West Bengal teacher recruitment scam in May 2022. Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's nephew Abhishek Banerjee, his wife and his parents are all suspects in the alleged scam.
In April 2023, the judge ordered the CBI to probe similar suspected recruitment scams in other departments as well.
Who is Abhijit Gangopadhyay
Gangopadhyay joined the Calcutta HC as an additional judge in 2018 and was elevated to a permanent judge in 2020. Born in 1962, he studied law at Hazra Law College and was involved in theatre. Prior to becoming a lawyer, Gangopadhyay was a West Bengal Civil Service (WBCS) A-grade officer.
TMC's reaction on Gangopadhyay's move
His bid to join the BJP has invited sharp criticism from the ruling TMC, which alleged that it is proved that the former judge made "politically motivated" decisions while holding the position.
"His decision proves that all the allegations that TMC was making for so many days were true. Sitting on the chair for so long, he was making politically motivated decisions. Today in the press conference, he openly said that before resigning, he had contacted the BJP or the BJP had contacted him, which means that talks were going on. It is not right that a judge was doing this while on the chair," TMC leader Kunal Ghosh said.