MP High Court Lifts Stay on Arrest Warrant Against TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has lifted an interim stay on the execution of an arrest warrant issued against Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Abhishek Banerjee in a defamation case, potentially adding to the legal challenges facing the party's national general secretary.

A single bench of Justice Pramod Kumar Agarwal dismissed Banerjee's petition and withdrew the stay that had been granted in November 2025 against the arrest warrant issued by a special MP-MLA court in Bhopal.

The case stems from a defamation complaint filed in 2021 by former Indore MLA Akash Vijayvargiya , son of senior BJP leader and Union minister Kailash Vijayvargiya . The complaint alleged that Banerjee had referred to Akash Vijayvargiya as a "goon" while addressing a political rally in Kolkata in November 2020.

Following the issuance of the arrest warrant by the Bhopal court, Banerjee approached the High Court seeking relief. In his petition, the TMC leader argued that as a sitting Member of Parliament, he was unlikely to abscond and therefore did not warrant coercive action. The High Court had subsequently stayed the execution of the warrant.

However, during the latest hearing, no one appeared on behalf of Banerjee. Taking note of the absence, the court observed that the petitioner appeared to have lost interest in pursuing the matter. The bench thereafter dismissed the plea, lifted the stay on the arrest warrant, and directed that a copy of the order be sent to the trial court in Bhopal.

The development carries political significance as Banerjee is one of the most prominent leaders in the ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal and is widely regarded as a key strategist within the party led by his aunt, former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee .

The court's decision comes at a time when Banerjee is already facing scrutiny in separate investigations by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) related to alleged corruption cases. While the defamation matter is unrelated to those probes, the latest order is likely to intensify the legal and political pressure on the senior TMC leader ahead of key political contests.