Stepping up attack to corner mercurial but beleaguered Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee; the ED on Thursday cited Whatsapp message wherein it could be shown/claimed that the TMC had planned the chaos in Calcutta High Court on Jan 9th.
Everyone come: ED cites WhatsApp chats to say TMC planned I-Pac hearing court chaos
The Trinamool Congress legal cell orchestrated the commotion inside the Calcutta High Court during the January 9 hearing in the Enforcement Directorate–I-Pac case, leading the judge to storm out barely five minutes into the proceedings, according to WhatsApp chats cited by the central agency in the Supreme Court and accessed by India Today TV on Thursday.
In the chats accessed by 'India Today TV', a message circulated in the WhatsApp group "Legal Minds" read, "Everyone gather inside Court No. 5, Item No. 10."
Despite repeated warnings from Justice Suvra Ghosh, order was not restored in the courtroom. Issuing a stern warning, she asked lawyers not associated with the case to leave within five minutes, failing which she said she would step out.
Pause FIRs, protect CCTV of I-PAC raid: Supreme Court blow to Mamata Banerjee
The Supreme Court issued notice to the West Bengal government on a plea filed by the ED against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the alleged obstruction of the agency's search at the office of political consultancy firm I-PAC, which works for the Trinamool Congress.
A bench comprising Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra and Justice Vipul M Pancholi issued notice to the West Bengal government on a plea filed by the ED against Mamata Banerjee, the state government, DGP Rajeev Kumar and senior police officers over the alleged obstruction of the agency’s search at the office of I-PAC, which works for the ruling Trinamool Congress.
"According to us, adherence to the rule of law in the country and to allow each organ to function independently, it is necessary to examine the issue so that the offenders are not allowed to be protected under the shield of law-enforcing agencies of a particular state," the bench said.
As proceedings began before the Supreme Court, the ED alleged that the West Bengal government’s actions during the raids reflected a “shocking pattern” of interference and obstruction. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the central agency, told the bench that similar incidents had occurred in the past whenever statutory authorities attempted to exercise their legal powers in the state.
“This reflects a very shocking pattern,” Mehta submitted, warning that such conduct would demoralise central agencies. “States will feel they can barge in, commit theft and then sit on a dharna. Let an example be set,” he said, urging the court to order action against officers who were present during the incident.
The Solicitor General argued that there was material to suggest incriminating evidence was present at the I-PAC office and said the court’s intervention was necessary to protect the fundamental rights of ED officers. “We are acting strictly under the law. We do not seize for personal gains,” he told the bench, seeking suspension of officials allegedly involved in the obstruction.
Mehta also flagged what he described as “mobocracy” at the Calcutta High Court, alleging that a large number of lawyers and outsiders entered the courtroom during the hearing, forcing the High Court to adjourn the matter. “This is what happens when mobocracy replaces democracy,” he remarked.
BJP set to use Singur to politically 'finish' Mamata ::
About 18 years after Mamata Banerjee used Singur as a statement to corner the erstwhile Left Front; in the run to the all important 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections, the same fertile land of Singur is back at the heart of a political contest.
This time, the BJP has chosen to make Singue as the battleground.
The Narendra Modi-led BJP is attempting to turn the tables by projecting Singur as a missed industrial opportunity, with the long-abandoned Tata Nano plant once again at the centre of the narrative.
PM Modi is scheduled to address a rally on January 18 at Singur's Singher Bheri mouza, land that was once earmarked for the Nano factory.
The acrimonious industry-versus-land debate, frozen for years, has been revived, with the Bengal BJP promising to "bring Tata back to Singur" if it comes to power and rescue West Bengal from the grip of a Muslim-appeasement, arrogant and corrupt dispensation.
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