Trinamool Congress on Saturday challenged the authenticity of a radiodiagnosis report made public by West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, who used the document to allege that Mamata Banerjee had fabricated a leg fracture claim during the 2021 West Bengal Assembly election campaign in Nandigram. The report, issued by the Bangur Institute of Neurosciences and dated 11 March 2021, was cited by Adhikari as proof that Banerjee's injury was not a fracture.

Adhikari's Allegation

Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari addressed media persons on Saturday, publicly releasing the radiodiagnosis report and accusing Mamata Banerjee of making a false claim about sustaining a leg fracture while campaigning in the Nandigram Assembly constituency in East Midnapore district ahead of the 2021 polls. Adhikari further stated that the state administration would initiate a separate investigation into what he described as her fabricated claim.

Trinamool's Counter-Claim

Hours after the allegation surfaced, Trinamool Congress legislator Kunal Ghosh, representing the Beliaghata Assembly constituency in North Kolkata, pushed back sharply. Ghosh, a journalist-turned-politician and a prominent figure in the Banerjee-led faction, indirectly suggested the report may have been doctored, arguing that since the current dispensation in West Bengal is run by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), questions about the document's authenticity were inevitable.

Ghosh also offered a medical counter-argument, contending that treatment decisions rest with the attending physician. 'It is up to the doctor concerned to decide whether the injured leg should be bandaged or plastered, as is done in cases of fracture,' he said. He further accused Adhikari of attempting to malign Banerjee personally because he was, in Ghosh's view, unable to challenge her politically.

Rebel Faction Piles On

Not all voices from within Trinamool's orbit came to Banerjee's defence. Ritabrata Banerjee, an expelled Trinamool legislator and a leader of what he describes as the 'rebel but majority' faction of the former ruling party, ridiculed the development. He called for a special award to be conferred on Mamata Banerjee for what he characterised as her ability to 'hoodwink common people.' 'I would request the current state government and the Chief Minister to arrange for this special award for Mamata Banerjee at a public programme at Brigade Parade Ground in Kolkata,' he said.

Background: The 2021 Nandigram Contest

The controversy traces back to the 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections, when Mamata Banerjee contested from Nandigram as the Trinamool Congress candidate and was defeated by Suvendu Adhikari by a margin of fewer than 2,000 votes. During the campaign, Banerjee was reportedly injured in Nandigram and subsequently campaigned with a plaster on her leg and from a wheelchair. She later retained the Chief Ministership after winning a bypoll from the Bhabanipur Assembly constituency in South Kolkata, securing her third consecutive term.

What Happens Next

Adhikari has indicated that the state administration will pursue a formal investigation into the injury claim. Trinamool, meanwhile, is expected to contest any such probe as politically motivated. The episode reopens one of the most bitterly contested chapters of the 2021 West Bengal elections, with both sides now staking credibility on the interpretation of a four-year-old medical document.