Former Calcutta High Court Judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay Joins BJP

Former Calcutta High Court Judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay of the Calcutta High Court who resigned on Tuesday officially joined the the Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday. Gangopadhyay cited “personal reasons” to resign from the high court in his resignation.

Earlierin the day, Agnimitra Paul, General Secretary and MLA went to house of Former Justice at Salt Lake.

VIDEO | Former Calcutta High Court judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay joins BJP. pic.twitter.com/PyaM5WPIxe

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In a press conference, on Wednesday, he announced that he will join the BJP. “I am joining the BJP as it is a national party, which is fighting against the corruption of the TMC in Bengal,” he said.

He further said that the party will decide whether he will be get to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Taking a dig at the Trinamool Congress (TMC), he said the ruling party in West Bengal has inspired me to enter politics.

On Tuesday morning, Gangopadhyay handed his resignation letter to President Droupadi Murmu, along with copies to CJI DY Chandrachud and Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court TS Sivagnanam.

Gangopadhyay is likely to run as a BJP candidate in the next Lok Sabha elections from Bengal’s Tamluk seat. The Tamluk seat has been a stronghold for the ruling Trinamool Congress in previous elections, with the party holding it since 2009.

Earlier, Gangopadhyay, sparked controversy with his interviews against TMC and was also pulled up by the Supreme Court for speaking to media as a sitting judge. He has given several verdicts against the TMC goverment. In April 2023, the Teacher Recruitment Scam involving TMC leader and CM Mamata Banerjee’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee was assigned to his bench. While dealing with the ‘School Jobs for Cash scheme,’ Justice Gangopadhyay spoke to a local Bengali news channel about Abhishek Banerjee’s role in the scheme.

In January 2024, Gangopadhyay engaged in a judicial spat with fellow judge Justice Soumen Sen of the Calcutta High Court, prompting the Supreme Court to take suo motu cognisance of the two judges’ ‘order war’. The Supreme Court had to convene two special sittings in a span of nine months to deal with his orders.