Supreme Court Rebukes Mamata Banerjee Over "Unusual" Interference in ED Raids

Hearing a petition filed by the ED, a bench of Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and N.V. Anjaria flagged the larger implications of the incident. The judges questioned what precedent it sets if a sitting Chief Minister directly intervenes in a central agency’s investigation. They pointedly asked whether agencies like the ED would be left “remediless” if such actions became the norm across states.

The court is currently examining the ED’s plea seeking action against Banerjee, the state Director General of Police, and other officials. In the meantime, it has stayed the FIRs filed by the West Bengal government against ED officers involved in the operation.

The controversy traces back to January 8, 2026, when the ED conducted searches at the Kolkata offices of I-PAC, a political consultancy linked to the Trinamool Congress, and at the residence of its chief, Prateek Jain. The raids were part of an ongoing money laundering probe tied to an alleged coal scam.

According to the ED, the situation escalated when Mamata Banerjee reached the spot with state police personnel and allegedly removed key materials from the premises — including a laptop, mobile phone, and documents. The agency has termed this a serious case of evidence tampering and a “gross abuse of power.”