Rampurhat, August 16: Mental distress stemming from corruption accusations appears to have played a key role in the death of former Deputy Speaker Asish Banerjee, whose body was discovered at a party office adjacent to his Rampurhat residence in Birbhum district. A note recovered from the scene revealed that the five-time legislator felt targeted by a sustained campaign to implicate him in financial irregularities concerning the Tarapith-Rampurhat Development Authority, despite his assertion that he was not involved in administrative or financial decisions.
Rampurhat police station officers initiated a formal inquiry, treating the written statement as a primary element of evidence while securing the post-mortem report from the local medical college.
“I had no other responsibility in TRDA except attending the general body meeting. I was not in the tender committee and was not the cheque signing authority,” Banerjee maintained in the note recovered from the site. He added that entering public life had felt like a mistake and urged his family to stay away from politics.
The discovery has drawn contrasting views from relatives who reject the suicide narrative. His sister-in-law, Deepa Banerjee, asserted that persistent character assassination aimed at an academic-turned-politician caused deep psychological distress, maintaining that the circumstances suggest foul play rather than self-harm. His brother, Prashanta Banerjee, noted that while the former minister appeared outwardly calm on Saturday evening, internal stress from ongoing allegations may have mounted.
Banerjee had stepped back from active politics after his defeat to BJP candidate Dhruba Saha in the 2026 Assembly elections, ending a 25-year legislative tenure. Police personnel continue to evaluate financial documents and testimonial evidence to establish the exact sequence of events leading up to the tragedy.
