Siliguri (West Bengal) [India], January 9 : West Bengal Congress President Subhankar Sarkar on Thursday alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is misusing the Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials for political purposes, claiming that the raids at the I-PAC office in Kolkata were deliberately carried out ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections.
Reacting to the searches, Sarkar said I-PAC has been working in West Bengal for nearly a decade and questioned the timing of the ED action. "IPAC has been working in Bengal for 10 years. What is the reason for the ED raids just before the elections? So many cases are pending. ED can go there. There is no issue with it. But today, the BJP is misusing ED people," he said to ANI.
He also questioned Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's presence at the I-PAC office during the raids, asking, "Why did the Chief Minister go there? ED raids happen in many places, but Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee does not go everywhere. So why did she go there, and that too with the Police Commissioner?"
Sarkar further alleged that central agencies were being selectively used for political purposes. "After raids, many people flock to join, and cases against them close. Why is the CM going there? TMC and BJP wanted to do binary politics in the state," he added.
The remarks come amid political drama in West Bengal after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee reached the offices of political consultancy firm I-PAC on Thursday, even as the ED was conducting search operations in connection with the coal smuggling case.
Earlier in the day, Mamata Banerjee visited the I-PAC office on a public road and accused the central agency of unlawfully seizing party-related data, laptops, mobile phones, and strategic documents. She alleged that forensic experts transferred data during the raid, calling it a "crime" and dared Union Home Minister Amit Shah to fight the Trinamool Congress (TMC) democratically in Bengal.
The Chief Minister claimed the ED confiscated sensitive party documents, including data related to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, despite the TMC being a registered political party that regularly submits income tax details.
Meanwhile, ED stated that the searches were conducted in accordance with legal safeguards. The agency claimed that certain individuals, including constitutional functionaries, illegally entered two premises and forcibly removed documents.
The ED has moved the Calcutta High Court alleging illegal interference during its search operations. As per sources, the matter is scheduled to be heard by Justice Suvra Ghosh on Friday, and the agency has also filed a case citing obstruction and hindrance to the investigation during the raids.
Amid the escalating BJP versus TMC showdown, Mamata Banerjee is set to lead a protest in Kolkata on January 9 against the ED raids, as West Bengal gears up for elections in the first half of this year.