Kolkata, Aug 2026 : The Calcutta High Court on Wednesday refused to grant permission to Trinamool Congress (TMC) National General Secretary and Diamond Harbour MP Abhishek Banerjee to travel abroad for specialised ophthalmic treatment, ruling that he had failed to comply with the court’s earlier direction to seek medical evaluation at a government hospital in Kolkata. A single-judge bench of Justice Sougata Bhattacharya dismissed Banerjee’s petition after his counsel informed the court that the Trinamool leader was unwilling to undergo examination at the state-run S.S.K.M. Medical College and Hospital, despite the court’s earlier recommendation.
During the hearing, Justice Bhattacharya recalled that at the previous hearing on July 20, the court had advised Banerjee to first consult medical experts at S.S.K.M. Hospital. The court had stated that it would consider granting permission for overseas treatment after reviewing the medical opinion submitted by the hospital.
However, when Banerjee’s legal team informed the court that he would not undergo examination at S.S.K.M., the judge declined his request to travel abroad and dismissed the petition in its entirety. The matter had earlier reached the Supreme Court after Banerjee challenged the Calcutta High Court’s direction. Last week, a three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Venkita Subramaniam Mohan referred the matter back to the Calcutta High Court, directing it to decide the issue within seven days.
Following the Supreme Court’s order, Justice Bhattacharya scheduled the hearing for Wednesday morning. After hearing submissions from both sides, the court concluded that there was no reason to grant the requested relief since the petitioner had chosen not to follow the court’s earlier direction regarding medical consultation. Appearing for Banerjee, senior advocate Rebecca Mammen John argued that her client required specialised eye treatment abroad.
She also submitted that Banerjee had previously been permitted to travel overseas in connection with an Enforcement Directorate (ED) case, suggesting that similar relief should be granted in the present matter. The state government strongly opposed the plea. Additional Advocate General Rajdeep Majumdar argued that the circumstances had changed significantly since the earlier permission was granted.
He pointed out that Banerjee was not an accused in the ED case when he had travelled abroad previously, whereas he is now facing multiple criminal proceedings. Majumdar contended that allowing the Diamond Harbour MP to leave the country at this stage could adversely affect ongoing investigations in cases where he is an accused. He urged the court not to permit foreign travel until those legal proceedings progressed.
Accepting the state's submissions and noting the petitioner’s refusal to undergo medical evaluation at S.S.K.M. Hospital, the Calcutta High Court declined permission for overseas treatment and dismissed the case, bringing the legal proceedings on the matter to a close for now.
