I-PAC office raid: ED seeks CBI probe, Mamata Banerjee named for 'illegal interference' in coal scam petitions

Kolkata: Major chaos unfolded on Friday inside the Calcutta High Court’s Justice Suvra Ghosh’ courtroom during the hearing of the petitions filed by Enforcement Directorate and two other petitioner Trinamool Congress and I-PAC Director Prateek Jain, as a huge number of lawyers and people entered the courtroom. Meanwhile, after the court was adjourned, ED has reportedly appealed before Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court, seeking a hearing today and even change of Justice.

Failing to hear the argument, Justice Suvra Ghosh left the courtroom. The court was adjourned and the next date of hearing has been scheduled on January 14.

Initially, Justice Ghosh warned that such disruption inside the courtroom will not be tolerated. Later when the crowd did not disperse and chaos continued, she left the courtroom. There was massive crowding inside the courtroom, and the crowd could not be managed.


Three petitions, including the one by the ED, were scheduled to be heard in Calcutta High Court today in Justice Suvra Ghosh's bench.

The ED, in its petition, has sought CBI probe, alleging illegal interference by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee during its search operations at I-PAC's office and I-PAC chief Prateek Jain's residence in Kolkata on Thursday, in connection with multi-crore coal scam. Two petitions have been moved by Trinamool Congress and Prateek Jain.

In its petition, ED has also sought a CBI probe by the Enforcement Directorate. In the petition, the central agency has named the state of West Bengal, WB CM Mamata Banerjee, DGP Rajeev Kumar, DCP South, Kolkata Commissioner Manoj Verma as respondents in the case. ED stressed that the CBI should lodge an FIR and start probe the Chief Minister and police's role.

In its petition, ED has also mentioned that the mobile phones, hard disc and laptop- digital evidence, which were related to the multi-crore coal scam, could not be seized by them, and these data and digital evidence should not be erased or tampered with and preserved in court. ED also sought that the Loudon Street and I-PAC office in Saltlake CCTV footage should be preserved. Trinamool, on the other hand, claims that ED has taken all their data and digital documents from I-PAC’s office which were in-charge of 360 degree political campaign.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) Thursday moved the Calcutta High Court, alleging illegal interference during its searches in Kolkata Thursday in connection with a multi-crore coal scam that allegedly involves the poll strategist of the Trinamool Congress. The ED claimed the searches were part of a routine probe into money laundering.

It alleged that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee “forcibly” removed “physical documents and electronic evidences in two of the premises” during ED’s raids - the office of India Political Action Committee (I-PAC) at Salt Lake and the residence of I-PAC's co-founder, Pratik Jain, in central Kolkata.

Meanwhile, after lodging two FIRs against the Enforcement Directorate in two city police stations, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to hit the streets on Friday, walking a seven-km long protest rally from Jadavpur to Hazra more, against ED raids in the I-PAC office and I-PAC director's residence on Thursday.

Two FIRs have been lodged by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee-one at Shakespeare Sarani PS and another at Salt Lake's Electronic Complex Police Station. While another FIR has been Kolkata police suo motu for preventing police in its work.