Former West Bengal Deputy Speaker and five-time Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Asish Banerjee was found dead at the party office located next to his residence in Birbhum district on Sunday morning. Police recovered a purported handwritten suicide note from the scene, in which the 74-year-old allegedly stated that no one should be held responsible for his death. The note also expressed regret over his decision to enter politics and advised younger members of his family to stay away from political life and instead focus on their professions. Authorities have launched an investigation, while the authenticity of the note is yet to be officially verified.
According to the contents of the purported note, Banerjee claimed he had never been involved in corruption or accepted money in exchange for official work. He also wrote that although he could not always agree with certain alleged wrongdoings within the Trinamool Congress, he was unable to openly oppose them. Referring to the Tarapith-Rampurhat Development Authority (TRDA), he denied having any role in tender approvals, cheque signing, building plan clearances or issuing no-objection certificates. He further alleged that attempts had been made to malign and humiliate him, leading him to believe that joining politics had been a mistake.
Asish Banerjee had been associated with politics since his student days and also worked as a teacher before entering public life. A close aide of Mamata Banerjee, he represented the Rampurhat Assembly constituency continuously from 2001 to 2026, besides serving as Deputy Speaker of the West Bengal Assembly and holding ministerial portfolios including School Education and Agriculture. His long electoral winning streak ended in the 2026 Assembly elections when he was defeated by BJP candidate Dhruva Saha. Police are continuing their investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death, while political leaders across the state have expressed shock over the incident.
