Kolkata, Jan 14 The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday welcomed the Calcutta High Court order disposing of the petition filed by the Trinamool Congress accusing the Enforcement Directorate (ED) of collecting confidential party documents during the simultaneous raids and searches at the Indian Political Action Committee's (I-PAC) office and at the residence of I-PAC co-founder Pratik Jain on January 8.
The single-judge bench of Justice Suvra Ghosh, while disposing of the petition, accepted the ED's submission that the central agency's officials could not seize anything from the two premises during the operation.
In a statement posted on his official social media handle, BJP's Information Technology Cell chief and the party'’s central observer for West Bengal Amit Malviya described the High Court’s order as a major embarrassment for Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
"The Calcutta High Court has set aside Mamata Banerjee's objection against the Enforcement Directorate, delivering a sharp rebuke to her blatant interference. After she brazenly barged into a live ED raid in a coal smuggling and money laundering case, attempting to browbeat central agencies on camera, the Chief Minister has now been firmly put in her place by the judiciary," Malviya claimed in his social media statement.
Malviya also alleged that the Chief Minister's actions during the raid exposed her contempt for the rule of law and desperation to shield corruption.
“Constitutional authorities cannot be intimidated by political theatrics, and the High Court has made that amply clear. Over to the Supreme Court now,” Malviya said.
On Wednesday, Justice Ghosh’s bench also adjourned hearing on the main petition filed by the ED accusing the Chief Minister of misusing her constitutional position by allegedly creating hindrances to the official duties of ED officials during the searches on January 8.
Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju sought an adjournment, stating that an ED petition in the same matter is pending before the Supreme Court.
At the time this report was filed, there was no reaction from the Trinamool Congress.
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