New Delhi: The Supreme Court of India on Tuesday adjourned to March 18 the hearing on a plea filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) alleging obstruction by the West Bengal government, including Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, during search operations linked to an alleged coal pilferage scam.
A bench comprising Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and KV Viswanathan deferred the matter after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the court that a rejoinder would be filed during the day.
Earlier, on January 15, the top court termed the alleged “obstruction” of the ED’s probe as “very serious” and agreed to examine whether a state’s law enforcement agencies can interfere with a central agency’s investigation into serious offences. The court had stayed FIRs registered in West Bengal against ED officials who conducted raids at the office of political consultancy firm Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) on January 8.
The court also directed the state police to preserve CCTV footage of the raids and issued notices to Banerjee, the West Bengal government, DGP Rajeev Kumar and other senior police officials on the ED’s petitions seeking a CBI probe into the alleged obstruction.
In its plea, the ED alleged that Banerjee entered the raid sites and removed “key” evidence, including physical documents and electronic devices, from the I-PAC premises, thereby interfering with the investigation. The agency claimed her presence at the site had an intimidating effect on its officers and compromised its ability to function independently.
The ED’s petition stems from searches conducted on January 8 at I-PAC’s Kolkata office and the residence of its director, Pratik Jain, as part of a money-laundering investigation into a multi-crore coal pilferage scam.
The West Bengal Police subsequently registered an FIR against ED officials. The ruling All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) has denied the allegations of obstruction, asserting that the ED’s action was aimed at accessing confidential election strategy material ahead of upcoming Assembly polls in the state.
The matter will now be heard on March 18.
