Biswa Bangla ownership row takes another turn: Mukul Roy questions Mamata's stance

Demanding an investigation by an independent agency into the ownership and trademark related issues of Biswa Bangla, BJP leader Mukul Roy has said that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s claim in West Bengal Legislative Assembly on Wednesday contradicts her nephew Abhishek Banerjee’s statement in the court.

Claiming to have documents to this effect, Roy said, "If there was no mess, then why did the CM’s nephew withdrew his application on 13th November, 2017, three days after I raised the issue in a public meeting. He applied for the trademark in November in 2013 and finally withdrew it four years later."

Reacting to Roy’s claims, Partha Chatterjee, secretary general of Trinamool Congress said, "Mukul Roy has to prove in court that Abhishek Banerjee is the owner of Biswa Bangla. He can produce various documents but ultimately the court is the highest authority where he has to prove himself right.”

This development comes a day after the CM said that it was he who had created the Biswa Bangla logo and that she had given permission to the state government to use it.

Her remarks come at a time when her nephew Abhishek Banerjee is embroiled in a legal battle with Roy. The controversy over Biswa Bangla started when former Trinamool Congress leader Mukul Roy, who is now with the BJP, alleged that Abhishek Banerjee, nephew of Mamata, owned the logo and that it was not a government entity.

On Thursday at a public rally at Gosaba in South 24 Parganas, the CM told the people that the BJP is trying to do its best by spreading rumours and sow discontent.

“I have received a report from district police that some unknown persons are offering money to the villagers and offering them help. Do not accept any such money as these people might be anti–social elements which BJP has sent to spread tension in the area. Do not entertain them,” she said.