Addressing a massive protest rally from Jadavpur to Habra, Banerjee alleged that the ED raids on the office of the India Political Action Committee (I-PAC) and the residence of its co-founder Pratik Jain were aimed at destabilising her election strategy ahead of the all important assembly election.
In a blistering statement delivered at the culmination of the rally, Banerjee accused Shah of being the ultimate beneficiary of alleged coal smuggling proceeds. “They are shouting about coal smuggling. The proceeds of coal smuggling have gone to Amit Shah. Money has changed hands - first to Jagannath Chattopadhyay, then to Suvendu Adhikari, and from him the money has gone to Amit Shah,” she said, claiming she possesses documentary proof. Banerjee asserted that the evidence was stored on pen drives and warned that she would make it public if provoked further. “There should be civility. If you cross the Laxman Rekha, I will forget all decency. My decency is not my weakness,” she declared.
The Chief Minister’s remarks came a day after the ED conducted searches linked to a money-laundering probe, which the agency says originates from an FIR registered in November 2020. According to the ED, investigators have uncovered evidence of hawala channels allegedly used for laundering funds in connection with coal smuggling, during which Pratik Jain’s name surfaced. The agency has maintained that the action was strictly evidence-based and unrelated to political considerations.
Banerjee, however, rejected the ED’s claims, questioned the timing of the raids, alleging that the raids were orchestrated at Shah’s behest. On Thursday, she had described the Home Minister as “naughty and nasty” and urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to “control” him. On Friday, she went further, accusing ED officials of attempting to seize sensitive internal data of her party under the guise of investigation.
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