The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday told the Calcutta High Court that it did not seize any data during its recent raids on the premises of political consultancy firm I-PAC and the residence of its co-founder, Pratik Jain.

Additional Solicitor General (ASG) SV Raju, appearing for ED, told the Court that contrary to apprehensions raised by All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) about alleged seizure of its confidential data, the agency did not seize anything. Raju said it was the Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who seized the documents and electronic evidence.

Justice Suvra Ghosh then recorded this statement and closed the plea filed by TMC seeking protection of any sensitive political data that the ED may have seized from I-PAC during the agency's raids.

"The only prayer is for the preservation of the political confidential data and protection of the same from being circulated to any entity by ED. The other prayers are not pressed. Ld counsel for respondents (ED, Central government) submits nothing whatsoever was seized from the two premises. Copies of panchnamas drawn up at alleged places of search and seizure demonstrate that nothing was seized from either the office of [I-PAC] or the residence of the Director [of I-PAC]. In view of the submissions made by respondents, nothing remains to be dealt with in the present application. The same is accordingly disposed of," the Court said.

On the other hand, a petition filed by the ED for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe against Chief Minister Banerjee, on allegations that she interfered with the agency's raids at I-PAC, was adjourned on the ED's request. The ED requested the adjournment since it has moved a similar plea before the Supreme Court.

The agency's plea, which is likely to be heard on Thursday by the top court, also seeks the return of documents and electronic material that Chief Minister Banerjee is said to have taken from premises linked to I-PAC.

National attention turned to Kolkata last week after Chief Minister Banerjee entered the I-PAC office and the residence of its co-founder while the ED was conducting searches in connection with a money-laundering probe.

Banerjee is alleged to have removed several documents and electronic devices from the premises. She claimed that the material contained information pertaining to her political party. According to reports, I-PAC has been associated with the Trinamool Congress since the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Both ED and the TMC eventually approached the High Court for relief in connection with the I-PAC raids.

The ED maintained that the searches were part of its investigation into a 2020 money-laundering case registered against businessman Anup Majee, who is accused of involvement in coal smuggling.

It said that Banerjee’s interference with its search operations constituted a direct assault on its powers under the PMLA and subverted the rule of law.

On the other hand, the TMC alleged that under the pretext of an investigation against I-PAC, the ED had tried to unlawfully gain access to the party’s campaign and political strategy ahead of the upcoming assembly elections in West Bengal. 

When the matter was taken up today, ASG SV Raju appeared for the ED and urged the Court to adjourn the hearing since a similar plea filed by the agency is now pending before the Supreme Court.

The adjournment request was vehemently opposed by Senior Advocates Menaka Guruswamy and Kalyan Bandyopadhyay, representing TMC and Banerjee, respectively.

When ASG Raju protested the TMC counsel's interjection and questioned the Court as to why he was not being allowed to complete his arguments first, Guruswamy said,

"Why is [ED] so worried? They don't want us to argue. It is an extraordinary sign of bullying by ED."

"How can she argue? They are on caveat (before the Supreme Court)," ASG Raju contended.

"We are not on caveat. We, Trinamool Congress, are not a party in the Supreme Court... There was a search, we believe ... we are not clear if anything has been seized. If something has been seized, our privacy may be maintained. We live in a constitutional democracy. It is a contentious democracy. We want our political data to be safeguarded. There is a right to privacy including on the basis of political ideology, and political data forms a part of political ideology which is protected. We only request that our political data be protected and not released in the media and not used in a political fashion," Guruswamy replied.

When ASG Raju again interjected, Guruswamy said,

"Unlike Mr. Raju, I don't try to bully courts. I want to be very clear."

This drew sharp protest from ASG Raju, who went on to ask how Guruswamy was certain that the TMC is not a party to the plea filed by the ED before the Supreme Court.

"Case status, Mr Raju," Guruswamy retorted.

Another counsel representing the Central government challenged the maintainability of TMC's plea in the matter. It was submitted that Election Commission of India (ECI) may be made a party to the case first.

The Centre's counsel also questioned how TMC's rights have been infringed by the ED's raids at I-PAC for it to file a writ petition.

"This writ petition is basically in respect of SIR. ECI is to be made party... Search was conducted at somebody else's house. Writ petition can be filed by someone whose rights are infringed. What rights [of TMC] are infringed?" he asked.

ASG Raju added that TMC's petition would also not be maintainable as Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is not a party.

"The record, if any seized, was by Mamata Banerjee. She has taken possession illegally and committed an offence. Unless she is made a party by TMC, plea is not maintainable. No records seized by ED," he said.

ASG Raju went on to argue that TMC has filed a false affidavit as it was sworn by a person who was not present during the ED raids and, therefore, could not make any claims in connection with them.

"The petition is filed by a stranger. Kindly look at who the petitioner is. How does he become acquainted. He was not there at search. Petitioner is All India Trinamool Congress, he is authorized signatory. Where is the authority? Was he present when so called material was seized. He says facts 'true to my knowledge', false statement on oath. He was nowhere in picture. I am showing he [TMC representative] has filed false affidavit. Search has nothing to do with Trinamool Congress. The person [whose premise searched] has not approached Court," he said.

He added that the defects he has flagged in TMC's petition cannot be cured, as they go to the root of the matter and amount to perjury.

The person who has signed off on TMC's petition was unconnected with the place of search and he was not present for the ED's searches, he said.

"How can a third person who has not seen anything file such a petition? The person is unconnected to the incident ... Petition has been filed by an incompetent person who could not have sworn to the correctness of the facts of the petition ... How does he know documents or anything else was seized?" he went on to argue.

He added that the TMC's petition also suffers from the vice of vagueness and is not maintainable on that ground as well.

"What was the sensitive data seized? Nothing. Petition is to be rejected on the ground of vice of vagueness ... What data have be seized. I am making statement. We have not seized. Mamata Banerjee has," he said.

He maintained that the High Court should adjourn all petitions in the matter, since a related plea by the ED is pending before the Supreme Court.

Senior Advocate Guruswamy, in turn, urged the Court to record ASG Raju's statement that the ED has not seized any data connected with TMC.

"Mr. Raju's statement may be recorded, as he is appearing for ED, that nothing was seized. He has asked my lady to record that. I will also join him in this request," she said.

The senior counsel added that the TMC had good reasons for coming to Court for relief, and objected to the ASG's attack on the party for such a move.

"It is inappropriate and unbecoming to bully a political party which has filed a petition at a time that it believed that personal data of that political party relevant to the upcoming elections was being housed by their political strategist - not of yesterday or day before - but of the past 6 years. It is a well-founded fear we had, and that is why we came to court," she said.

Guruswamy also maintained that the TMC member who signed off on the petition was duly authorised to do so by the party.

"There is no great conspiracy here. We all want to have free and fair elections. We find it suspect that our political strategist's office was targeted in this way a few months before the elections," she further argued.

She also objected to the manner in which ASG Raju referred to the Chief Minister.

"Next time you want to, as a law officer, refer to a sitting Chief Minister by her name, give her the dignity of calling her the Chief Minister of the State, a multi-term Chief Minister. There is a certain decorum to be maintained in the courtroom, Mr Raju," Guruswamy said.

The Court eventually disposed of TMC's plea, after recording the ED's statement that nothing was seized by it during the raids.

[Live updates from hearing]