Overview
- Calling the confrontation "very serious," the Supreme Court issued notices to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, the state DGP and Kolkata police commissioner over alleged obstruction of ED searches linked to a coal laundering case.
- As interim relief, the court stayed Kolkata Police FIRs against ED officers and ordered preservation of CCTV and electronic records from the January 8 operations at I-PAC and the home of its director, Pratik Jain.
- ED, represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, alleged the chief minister entered search sites with senior police and removed evidence, while counsel for Banerjee and the state said the action was politically timed and the searches were peaceful.
- In a fresh filing, ED sought to implead the Union Home Ministry and DoPT, asked for departmental action including suspension of senior West Bengal police officials, and said it is verifying reports on the role of the state chief secretary.
- Separately in Ranchi, police searched ED’s zonal office and collected CCTV after an ex-state employee accused two ED officers of assault; ED disputed the claim, moved the high court to quash the FIR and seek a CBI probe, with a hearing listed for January 16.