The Supreme Court of India on Wednesday slammed West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over her alleged obstruction during an Enforcement Directorate (ED) raid at Trinamool Congress political consultancy firm I-PAC founder Pratik Jain’s Kolkata residence in January this year.
The court held that a chief minister cannot storm the premises in the midst of an investigation and asserted that the Bengal CM’s actions put democracy in jeopardy.
“This is, per se, an action by an individual who happens to be the CM who has used the entire system to put democracy in jeopardy,” the top court told Banerjee.
Hearing the ED’s plea seeking registration of a CBI FIR against CM Banerjee and the State Police Officials for allegedly obstructing the agency’s raid, a bench of Justices PK Mishra and NV Anjaria said that when a CM walks into ED inquiry, it is not a Centre vs State matter.
“What right of the state does this involve? This is not a dispute between the state and the central government. You cannot walk in. Any Chief Minister of any state walks in the midst of an inquiry of an investigation and you say that it is a dispute essentially between the state and the central government?” the bench remarked.
The apex court also deprecated the alleged ‘gherao’ of judicial officers deputed in the state for the SIR exercise.
Terming the current socio-political realities in the poll-bound state an “extra-ordinary situation”, the bench told the counsels arguing on behalf of the West Bengal administration, which includes CM Mamata Banerjee and other senior officials, that they may argue on abstract legal principles but the Court cannot shut its eyes to the practical realities going on in the State.
“This is an extraordinary situation. Before the other Bench (referring to the gherao in the SIR case), we have seen that several judicial officers have been kept hostage. We cannot shut our eyes to realities. You may argue abstract legal principles, but we cannot lose sight of the practical situation occurring in the State”, the Court remarked.
The matter has been listed for further hearing on Thursday.