Overview
- The Calcutta High Court disposed of the Trinamool Congress plea after recording the ED’s statement and panchnamas that nothing was seized from I-PAC or director Pratik Jain’s home on January 8.
- Justice Suvra Ghosh also adjourned the ED’s application in the High Court, noting the agency has filed similar petitions in the Supreme Court.
- A bench led by Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and Vipul Pancholi is scheduled to hear the ED’s plea on Thursday seeking a CBI probe and other relief tied to alleged obstruction.
- The ED alleges Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee removed documents and devices during the searches, a claim the TMC disputes while accusing the agency of political targeting; the state has filed a caveat in the top court.
- The January 8 searches were part of a money-laundering probe linked to an alleged coal pilferage scam, and High Court hearings were live-streamed after earlier courtroom overcrowding.