West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday said that after winning the West Bengal Assembly elections scheduled for later this year, the opposition must “win Delhi”.
Banerjee was speaking at a protest rally in Kolkata against the Enforcement Directorate’s raids on the residence of I-PAC chief Pratik Jain and the political consultancy’s office in Salt Lake. Addressing supporters, the Trinamool Congress supremo said that the country “can’t have BJP rule India”.
Attack On BJP Over Alleged Targeting Of Bengalis
At the rally, Banerjee accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of intolerance towards Bengalis. “They are not able to tolerate Bengali. They are killing all Bengali-speaking people in Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi, Gujarat,” she said, targeting the BJP.
ED Alleges Obstruction Of Investigation
The Enforcement Directorate has alleged that Banerjee walked out with a laptop, a phone and multiple documents from Pratik Jain’s residence and I-PAC offices during the raid. The central agency has approached the High Court, claiming that Banerjee, despite being a Chief Minister, is “obstructing investigation” and “defending those involved in coal smuggling and money laundering”.
TMC, ED Trade Charges In Court
The Trinamool Congress has also moved court against the ED. Banerjee, who heads the party, has accused the agency of stealing election-related documents belonging to the TMC. A hearing in the matter is expected to be held on Friday.
Banerjee has maintained that the raid was politically motivated and carried out at the behest of the BJP. The ED has rejected the charge, stating that the search was “evidence-based and is not targeted at any political establishment”.
‘Is It ED’s Duty?’ Mamata Questions Agency
Speaking earlier on the raid, Banerjee said the agency was targeting her party’s political operations. “They came to collect our party's hard disk, candidate list, party strategy and party plan. Is it the duty of ED and Amit Shah?” she asked.
The ED action and the ensuing political confrontation have sharpened tensions between the Trinamool Congress and the BJP as the state heads towards assembly elections later this year.