The Supreme Court on Monday held a sharp hearing on a case linked to an Enforcement Directorate (ED) search at the Kolkata office of election strategy firm I-PAC, associated with the Trinamool Congress.
The ED has alleged that during the January 8 search at the I-PAC office and at the residence of its head Prateek Jain, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee arrived at the spot and obstructed the operation. The agency also claimed that certain files and digital devices were taken away.
Seeking a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the alleged obstruction, the ED has moved the Supreme Court. A bench of Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and N.V. Anjaria questioned how it would be an effective remedy to ask the state police—under the control of the same state government—when the Chief Minister herself is accused of blocking the search.
The bench also observed that ED officials remain Indian citizens and can approach the Supreme Court if their fundamental rights are affected. Appearing for the West Bengal government, senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Shyam Divan argued that the ED is a government body, not an individual, and therefore cannot invoke Article 32 on the ground of fundamental rights violations, adding that such disputes should be brought by the Union under Article 131.
The matter has drawn attention as West Bengal’s political atmosphere heats up ahead of elections.
