Kolkata: The Bengal govt will introduce a legislation to protect “lawful businesses from syndicate charges” and other forms of “informal extortion”, finance minister Swapan Dasgupta announced while presenting the state budget on Monday.He described the move as a key step towards improving the investment climate and reducing the cost of doing business in Bengal.CM Suvendu Adhikari later said the govt is determined to eliminate extortion by syndicates, which has long been cited by industry as a barrier to investment. “We will stop extortion by syndicates completely. That will improve the investment environment. There will be a single-window system for industry,” he said.Emphasising the need for structural reforms to attract investors, the CM said, “We have to improve law and order, stop cut-money extortion and syndicate raj. We will create an environment conducive to investment. We will strengthen roads, airports and water transport, and ensure availability of raw materials.”Explaining the rationale for the proposed law, Dasgupta said extortion and illegal interference have increased the cost of doing business in Bengal and are hurting investor confidence.“There is an urgent need to significantly improve the investment climate by reducing the cost of doing business caused by extortion and interference. It will boost investor confidence, encourage expansion and new setups, especially in manufacturing, MSMEs and IT, protect supply chains and operations from disruptions and enhance employment generation,” he said while delivering the budget speech.“Our govt will bring legislation to safeguard lawful businesses from syndicate charges and other informal extortions. By enabling faster redressal and personal accountability for offenders, it addresses long-standing industry grievances, potentially attracting more domestic and foreign investment while promoting rule of law without undermining legitimate regulatory oversight,” he said.The announcement coincides with the BJP govt’s crackdown on syndicate operations and other illegal activities. On May 11, two days after being sworn in as CM, Adhikari had directed officials to intensify action against syndicate networks, and groups involved in illegal sand mining and unauthorised coal extraction.The realty sector welcomed the move. CREDAI West Bengal president Sushil Mohta said extortion and syndicate-related activities had significantly inflated construction cost. “Extortion and syndicate charges led to an additional cost of Rs 250-500 per sq ft. We appreciate the understanding of the problem and an attempt to tackle it to improve the investment climate and ease of doing business,” Mohta said.Since the change of govt in Bengal, many Trinamool Congress functionaries have been arrested in cases linked to alleged extortion, syndicate operations, recruitment irregularities and bribery. Among them are 10 former councillors of Kolkata Municipal Corporation and five former councillors of Bidhannagar Municipal Corporations.Among those arrested are former KMC councillors Susanta Ghosh, Bappaditya Dasgupta and Sudip Polley. Former minister Sujit Bose, former Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation chairperson Sabyasachi Dutta and former North Bengal development minister Udayan Guha are in custody in cases related to recruitment scam, extortion and bribery.Santanu Sinha Biswas, a former deputy commissioner of Kolkata Police, and alleged syndicate operator Sona Pappu are among others arrested in extortion-related cases.
