The Kolkata Police is verifying the identities of the ED officials who conducted searches at the office of political consultancy firm I-PAC and the residence of its chief Pratik Jain, amid allegations of forced entry and theft of documents, a senior officer said.
According to the officer, the police have decided to record the statements of Mr. Jain's neighbours to ascertain whether they witnessed any part of the searches or the manner in which the ED officials entered the building located on Loudon Street in Kolkata.
“Notices have already been served to several residents, directing them to appear for questioning,” he said. “We want to know what the residents and neighbours saw that morning. Their statements are crucial to establishing the sequence of events," he said on Monday (January 12, 2026).
"The names of ED officials do not appear in the housing complex's security register. Investigators have found indications that the central agency officials allegedly entered the premises by pushing past security guards without following standard entry procedures," the senior Kolkata Police officer said.
“It has also been claimed that the mobile phones of security personnel were forcibly taken away during the operation,” he said.
The raids took place on Thursday (January 8, 2026) morning, when ED officials searched Mr. Jain's residence on Loudon Street. Soon after the news broke, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee visited the spot.
The Trinamool Congress supremo alleged that sensitive party-related election documents, both physical and electronic, were kept at Mr. Jain's residence and at I-PAC's Sector V office, and that these were stolen during the raid.
"These were important organisational documents related to elections. They have been taken away illegally," CM Banerjee alleged, following which complaints were lodged against the ED at Shakespeare Sarani Police Station and Bidhannagar Electronic Complex Police Station. The Kolkata Police has since intensified its investigation into the matter.
Curated by Aisha Patel
