The Supreme Court of India is set to address a plea by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) regarding alleged interference by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee during search operations at the office of Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) and the residence of co-founder Pratik Jain in Kolkata. The matter is scheduled for a hearing on March 18 before a Bench of Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and N. V. Anjaria. During a previous hearing, the ED expressed feeling “terrorised” in West Bengal.
The ED, represented by Additional Solicitor General S. V. Raju, denied claims of weaponizing its powers and stated that it had been “terrorised” instead. This response came after arguments by senior advocate Siddharth Luthra. The ED seeks directions from the top court to file FIRs against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, the state Director General of Police (DGP), and the Kolkata Police Commissioner for allegedly obstructing lawful duties during simultaneous search operations.
Chief Minister Banerjee, in her counter-affidavit, refuted all allegations of interference and obstruction. She clarified that her presence at the premises was solely to retrieve confidential data of her party, Trinamool Congress (AITC), during the searches. Banerjee visited the locations after learning about sensitive political data being accessed. She emphasized that the data was crucial for the AITC’s strategy for the upcoming Legislative Assembly election.
