[Kolkata], 8/1 : In an unprecedented escalation of the Centre-State conflict in West Bengal, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has leveled a direct and explosive allegation against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, accusing her of physically removing “key evidence” during an active raid connected to the multi-crore coal smuggling scam.
The drama unfolded early Thursday morning when ED sleuths launched simultaneous searches at ten locations, including the Loudon Street residence of Pratik Jain, a director at the political consultancy firm I-PAC (Indian Political Action Committee), and the firm’s office in Salt Lake’s Sector V. The agency claims the raids were part of a money-laundering probe tracing the “proceeds of crime” from the coal scam to political funding channels.
According to the ED’s official statement, proceedings were “peaceful and professional” until the arrival of the Chief Minister. The agency alleges that Ms. Banerjee, accompanied by a heavy contingent of state police and aides, entered Mr. Jain’s residence and “forcibly took away” physical documents and electronic devices deemed crucial to the investigation.
“The Chief Minister entered the premises and removed key evidence… subsequently proceeding to the I-PAC office where similar materials were forcibly removed,” the ED stated, terming the act a “flagrant obstruction” of legal procedures under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The federal agency has immediately moved the Calcutta High Court, seeking judicial intervention against what it describes as state-sponsored interference.
Ms. Banerjee, however, offered a fiery rebuttal from the spot, brandishing a file before cameras. She claimed the central agency was acting on the behest of the BJP to seize sensitive Trinamool Congress (TMC) data, including candidate lists and internal strategy documents for the upcoming 2026 Assembly Elections. “Is it the ED’s job to steal my party’s election data? They are taking away hard disks and candidate details under the guise of a coal scam probe. I have retrieved my party’s property,” she declared, accusing Union Home Minister Amit Shah of orchestrating a “political vendetta.”
The raids stem from the 2020 coal pilferage case involving prime accused Anup Majhi, alias ‘Lala’. The ED suspects that kickbacks from the illegal coal trade were routed through hawala operators to fund political campaigns managed by I-PAC. The consultancy group, previously associated with strategist Prashant Kishor, manages the TMC’s digital and ground campaigns.
Visuals from the scene showed a chaotic standoff, with central paramilitary forces guarding the ED officials while Kolkata Police personnel escorted the Chief Minister. The incident marks a new flashpoint in Bengal politics, raising serious legal questions about the limits of federal investigative powers versus state executive privilege.
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