‘Repeated pleas for order fell on deaf ears’: What happened inside Calcutta HC during ED's I-PAC raid hearing

High drama unfolded in the Calcutta high court on Friday over Enforcement Directorate (ED) raids at the home of political consultancy firm I-PAC director Pratik Jain. The hearing ended in an adjournment after the judge said that “enormous disturbance” was created in her courtroom while the matter was being heard.

The ED moved the plea amid intense political tension in West Bengal following the raids. The high drama began on Thursday after chief minister Mamata Banerjee arrived at the I-PAC office while the ED was conducting searches linked to the alleged 2020 coal smuggling case.

The TMC supremo accused officials of attempting to “steal” her party’s documents and hard disks, which she said contained details of candidates for the upcoming high-stakes assembly elections. “You are using agencies to loot our papers, our strategy, our voters, our data, our Bengal... By doing all this, the number of seats you were getting will be reduced to zero. I am sorry Mr Prime Minister, please control your home minister,” she told reporters, targeting the BJP.

The Calcutta high court had to adjourn the hearing of petitions linked to the case on Friday after chaos broke out inside the courtroom involving the ED and the TMC.

Justice Suvra Ghosh observed that many lawyers and other people walked into her courtroom and caused “enormous disturbance and commotion” when the matter was heard.

The order said that even after the judge repeatedly asked everyone to maintain order and respect so the hearing could take place, the requests “fell on deaf ears”, Bar and Bench reported.

“The environment in the courtroom is not conducive to commence or continue with the hearing. In view of such a situation, this court is constrained to adjourn the matter,” the judge wrote.

The court was set to hear two separate petitions filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC).

While the ED’s case calls for a CBI inquiry against Banerjee for allegedly blocking an ongoing investigation, the TMC’s case seeks orders to stop the central agency from sharing or leaking any information linked to the party.

Later on Friday, the chief minister stepped up her confrontation with the Centre ahead of the assembly elections as she led a massive protest rally in Kolkata over the ED raid at I-PAC and accused the BJP of using central agencies to “steal” the TMC’s election strategy.