The Supreme Court on Thursday reserved its order on a plea filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and its officers seeking an FIR and investigation against former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and certain police officials over the alleged obstruction of the agency’s search at the office of political consultancy firm I-PAC on January 8.
A bench comprising Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and NV Anjaria reserved its verdict on the limited question of whether the investigation should be handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) or left to the newly formed government in West Bengal.
Appearing for Banerjee, senior advocate Kapil Sibal argued that the political situation in the state had changed since the incident, with Banerjee no longer serving as Chief Minister. He submitted that the new state government was free to refer the matter to the CBI if it chose to do so.
“There was a raid as far as I-PAC is concerned. Something happened; police officers were involved, there was a complaint against ED officers. An Article 32 petition was filed and the prayer was to send it to the CBI. She was a sitting Chief Minister then. Now, she is not the Chief Minister. So there is no impediment,” Sibal said, according to news agency PTI.
He further argued that the state government could independently decide whether to transfer the case to the central agency, adding that no one could prevent it from doing so.
Justice Mishra referred to submissions made during the previous hearing by senior advocate Menaka Guruswamy, who had raised concerns about the possibility of the state government being accused of acting with political motives.
In response, Sibal assured the bench that there would be no such political considerations in the matter.
However, Additional Solicitor General SV Raju opposed leaving the investigation to the state government, arguing that any such move could invite allegations of mala fide intent. He also pointed out that senior police officials had been named as accused and could potentially influence the investigation.
What Is The Case?
The ED’s plea stems from its January 8 search at the Kolkata office of I-PAC as part of an investigation into an alleged money laundering case.
According to the agency, Banerjee reached the premises during the search along with senior leaders of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and confronted the ED officials. The agency has further alleged that the former Chief Minister took away certain files from the premises, claiming that the incident obstructed its investigation.
The ED and its officers subsequently approached the Supreme Court, seeking an FIR and an investigation into the alleged interference involving Banerjee and certain police officials.
