New Delhi/Kolkata: Political tensions escalated on Friday following Enforcement Directorate (ED) raids on multiple locations in Kolkata, including the offices of IPAC, the political consultancy firm managing Trinamool Congress (TMC)’s election campaigns. The move sparked widespread protests, reaching the national capital.
Eight TMC MPs staged a demonstration outside the office of Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi to protest the raids. During the protest, Derek O’Brien and Mahua Moitra were taken into police custody while raising their objections against the ED action.
Addressing the media, Moitra said: “We will defeat the BJP. The country is witnessing how the Delhi Police are treating elected MPs.” TMC MP Pratima Mandal alleged: “Amit Shah used ED officials to seize our political documents. The BJP cannot win elections in West Bengal, so they are resorting to such underhanded tactics.”
Political Fallout in West Bengal
The TMC has characterized the ED raid as politically motivated, asserting that it was aimed at disrupting the party’s election campaign. Following the raids, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee called on party leaders and workers to hold protests across the state. Demonstrations took place in all districts, blocks, and neighborhoods, denouncing the ED raids on IPAC’s Salt Lake office and the residence of its co-founder and director, Prateek Jain.
Banerjee, who visited the IPAC office in Salt Lake earlier on Thursday, directed party units to organize the protests that same evening. The ED action at IPAC, which has been managing TMC’s political consultancy since 2019, included raids on both the office and Jain’s residence on Loudon Street.
The raids and subsequent political demonstrations highlight intensifying tensions between the central government and TMC ahead of upcoming elections, as accusations of misuse of federal agencies for political purposes continue to surface.
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