NEW DELHI: Investigation against I-PAC continued with Enforcement Directorate taking a review meeting in Kolkata Wednesday in presence of agency’s director Rahul Navin amid indications that the political consultancy’s chief Pratik Jain will be summoned for questioning soon after statements of his other associates have been recorded.ED is keen on pressing its “destruction-of-evidence” charge against West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee and officials of the state govt. It has video grabs of the CM and her aides allegedly taking away documents and digital devices from the premises of I-PAC on Jan 8 when it was being searched by the central probe agency in connection with a coal smuggling case, which can be used in a separate case of destruction of evidence.I-PAC is under investigation for suspected laundering of unaccounted cash regarding which a few hawala dealers have also been questioned and their statements recorded by the agency.Banerjee has been made respondent No 2 in ED’s criminal writ petition before Supreme Court demanding action against those indulging in obstruction of its Jan 8 search operation. SC has already issued notices to the CM and her officers, including the state DGP Rajeev Kumar, respondent No 3, commissioner of Kolkata Police Manoj Verma, respondent No 4, Priyabrata Roy, DCP South Kolkata and CBI. The ED’s plea has also made Union home secretary and DoPT secretary besides Bengal’s chief secretary other respondents in the case, which has been scheduled for next hearing in the apex court in the first week of Feb. The ED’s money laundering probe is linked to its coal scam case in which the prime accused Anup Majee is accused of illegally excavating coal from ECL leasehold areas of West Bengal and selling them to factories/plants located in Bankura, Bardhhaman, Purulia and other districts of Bengal.In a press release issued immediately afterwards its search and seizure operation was disrupted by Banerjee and senior state officials, the anti-money laundering agency said it had visited I-PAC’s office to follow up its finding that “one hawala operator linked to layering of proceeds of crime of coal smuggling had facilitated transactions of tens of crores of rupees to Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC)”.The agency said the search covered persons linked to generation of coal smuggling proceeds, hawala operators and handlers. “I-PAC is also one of the entities linked to hawala money,” it added.“Ms Banerjee entered residential premises of Pratik Jain and took away evidence, including physical documents and electronic devices. The CM’s convoy then proceeded to I-PAC’s office premises, from where Ms Banerjee, her aides, and state police personnel forcibly removed physical documents, electronic evidence,” it claimed.
