Mamata Banerjee Leads Rally, Court Hearing Briefly Halted as Judge Steps Out

The standoff between the Centre and the West Bengal government intensified on Friday as Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee led a protest rally in Kolkata against the Enforcement Directorate’s raids linked to political consultancy firm I-PAC, while a Calcutta High Court hearing on the matter was briefly affected after Justice Suvra Ghosh stepped out of the courtroom citing overcrowding, the case will now be taken up on Wednesday as the court remains closed over the weekend.

The Enforcement Directorate has alleged that Banerjee obstructed officials during searches conducted at the I-PAC office and at the residence of its co-founder Pratik Jain in connection with a coal smuggling investigation. In its plea, the agency claimed the chief minister had overstepped her constitution authority and sought a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into her alleged role.

The ED also claimed that during the searches, Banerjee left Jain’s residence carrying electronic devices and documents. These allegations were strongly contested by Jain and the Trinamool Congress, both of whom approached the court with counter-petitions.

The Trinamool Congress said the raids were politically motivated and aimed at accessing election related material, as I-PAC has been advising the party ahead of the upcoming Bengal Assembly elections. The party alleged the action was intended to benefit the BJP. As court proceedings were underway, Banerjee led a large foot march from Jadavpur to Hazra Crossing, covering several kilometres. Senior party leaders accompanied her, while supporters gathered along the route in a show of solidarity.

The BJP accused the chief minister of corruption and demanded accountability, with senior leader Ravi Shankar Prasad stating that Banerjee should be named in the case for allegedly intimidating central agency officials. Trinamool leaders, however, accused the BJP of using investigative agencies to gain political advantage ahead of the polls.