Major drama as Mamata ‘rushes’ to I-PAC chief’s house in Kolkata amid ED raid; claims TMC docs eyed
Mamata Banerjee said the raid at the residence of Jain, whom she termed as the party’s IT chief, was “politically motivated and unconstitutional.”
High drama erupted in West Bengal’s Kolkata on Thursday when chief minister Mamata Banerjee rushed to the residence of Prateek Jain, the head of top political consultancy group I-Pac, after an ED raid, during which she claimed officials attempted to seize her party Trinamool Congress’s (TMC) hard disks as well as internal documents and sensitive data.
Search operations were also conducted at the office of the I-PAC, (Indian Political Action Committee).
In videos of her visit to Jain’s residence and office that surfaced on social media,Mamata Banerjee was clearly charged, dodging media persons to make her way amid noisy scenes.
Mamata Banerjee said the raid at the residence of Jain, whom she termed as the party’s IT chief, was “politically motivated and unconstitutional.”
“They have raided the residence of our IT chief. They were confiscating my party’s documents and hard disks, which have details about our candidates for the assembly polls. I have brought those back,” PTI news agency quoted Mamata Banerjee as saying.
“Is it the duty of Home Minister Amit Shah and the ED to take away all my party documents? If I go to the BJP party office, what will be the result? Under the SIR, 5 lakh names have been deleted. Just because there is an election, they are taking away all my party’s documents,” Banerjee added.
BJP attacks Mamata
Leader of Opposition in West Bengal assembly, BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari termed chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s visit to I-PAC chief Pratik Jain’s house during the ED raid on Thursday as “unconstitutional and intervention” in the central agency’s probe.
He said that the ED should take steps against the chief minister.
“I feel that the chief minister and the Kolkata police commissioner’s visit was unethical, unconstitutional and direct intervention in the central agency’s investigation,” Adhikari told reporters soon after their visit to Jain’s residence at Loudon Street in Kolkata, as the ED raid was going on there.
The BJP leader said that Banerjee had went to the then Kolkata police commissioner Rajeev Kumar’s official residence during a CBI raid there.
BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari said “rattled” Mamata Banerjee “rushed” to defend Jain with “Kolkata Police CP Manoj Verma standing beside her”.
“RATTLED Mamata Banerjee rushes to defend IPAC chief Prateek Jain—with none other than Kolkata Police CP Manoj Verma standing beside her. WHY? Because the illegal money trail that Trinamool Congress tried to camouflage by keeping IPAC in front has now been EXPOSED,” Bhandari said in an
Illegal money cannot be used to fund elections, manipulate voters, or kidnap democracy, he said.
The exact nature of the searches and details of the case being investigated were not immediately known, neither there was any official statement from the ED or the I-PAC till the filing of this report.
NEW DELHI:
West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday accused the Center of holding political vendetta, alleging that central agencies were being misused ahead of elections, after the Enforcement Directorate carried out searches at various places, including the residence of IPAC chief Pratik Jain.
Responding sharply to the action, Banerjee questioned the role of the ED and Union home minister Amit Shah. She claimed that party documents and data were being seized under the pretext of investigations. She also alleged that voter names were being deleted in West Bengal during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision exercise, linking the moves to the election process.
The Enforcement Directorate raided the office of the political consultancy firm I-PAC in Salt Lake and the residence of its chief Pratik Jain on Thursday morning.
Jain was at his fourth floor residence when the raid took place and was being questioned. Around noon on Thursday, chief minister Mamata Banerjee arrived at his residence.
The raids which started early on Thursday morning are going on simultaneously at the office of the I-PAC office on 11th floor of a building in Salt Lake, Jain’s residence on Loudon street and another businessman’s office at Burrabazar’s Posta.
Established by Prashant Kishor ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, I-PAC has been working with the Trinamool Congress and the Bengal government post-2019 Lok Sabha polls, though Kishor has moved into full time politics. I-PAC was instrumental in the party returning to power in the 2021 Assembly polls with a thumping majority and also the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
Sources said the raids were being carried out in connection with a coal trafficking case.
The Trinamool general secretary and Diamond Harbor MP Abhishesh Banerjee has been questioned several times by both the central agencies, the ED and the CBI, in connection with the scam over the last few years.
The raids come just months before the state is due to go into elections with the BJP the main challenger.
Abhishek has repeatedly said that despite the allegations and the involvement of central probe agencies against the Trinamool and its party leaders, the Trinamool will return to power for a fourth straight term.
Search operations were also conducted at the office of the I-PAC (Indian Political Action Committee), which looks does political consultancy for West Bengal ruling party TMC’s and also looks after its IT and media cell.
In videos of her visit to Jain’s residence and office that surfaced on social media, Mamata Banerjee was clearly charged, dodging media persons to make her way amid noisy scenes.
Mamata Banerjee said the raid at the residence of Jain, whom she termed as the party’s IT chief, was “politically motivated and unconstitutional.”
“They have raided the residence of our IT chief. They were confiscating my party’s documents and hard disks, which have details about our candidates for the assembly polls. I have brought those back,” PTI news agency quoted Mamata Banerjee as saying.
“Is it the duty of Home Minister Amit Shah and the ED to take away all my party documents? If I go to the BJP party office, what will be the result? Under the SIR, 5 lakh names have been deleted. Just because there is an election, they are taking away all my party’s documents,” Banerjee added.
For more such information, connect with us today: : www.globalmediaa.com
