“About 10 premises in Siliguri, Howrah, Bidhannagar and Durgapur were raided,” the officials of the federal probe agency said. File
| Photo Credit: X/@dir_ed

“The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday (March 16, 2026) conducted searches at multiple locations in poll-bound West Bengal as part of a probe into the operations of an alleged illegal call centre,” officials said.

“About 10 premises in Siliguri, Howrah, Bidhannagar and Durgapur were raided. The probe pertains to the activities of an “illegal” call centre,” the officials of the federal probe agency said. It was not immediately clear if the probe is linked to some political funding or inducements linked to the electoral process.

Persons named Surashree Kar, Samrat Ghosh and Subhajit Chakraborty, apart from some others, are those being searched. “A number of people are alleged to have been duped through the call centres that are under the scanner,” they said.

The Election Commission on Sunday (March 15, 2026) announced the schedule for the Assembly polls in West Bengal, stating that the State will have polls in two phases on April 23 and 29. Votes will be counted on May 4, 2026 along with three States of Assam, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, apart from the Union Territory of Puducherry.

Published – March 16, 2026 12:33 pm IST