ED carries out searches at I-PAC premises, Pratik Jain’s house in Kolkata

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday carried out searches at the Kolkata office of political consultancy firm I-PAC and the residence of its director, Pratik Jain, in connection with a money laundering investigation linked to an alleged multi-crore rupee coal pilferage case, official sources said.

According to the sources, the agency raided around 10 locations from 7 am onwards, including I-PAC’s office in Salt Lake and Jain’s home on Loudon Street in Kolkata, as well as four premises in Delhi. Central paramilitary forces were deployed during the searches.

Jain, a co-founder and director of the Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) and an IIT-Bombay graduate, is under scrutiny as investigators claim there is “specific” evidence connecting him to certain hawala transactions and cash dealings allegedly linked to the coal “scam” in West Bengal. Jain also heads the IT cell of the Trinamool Congress, which is in power in the state.

The ED’s investigation originates from a First Information Report registered by the CBI in November 2020, which flagged a large-scale coal pilferage racket involving Eastern Coalfields Limited mines in the Kunustoria and Kajora regions around Asansol in West Bengal. Local coal trader Anup Majhi, also known as Lala, has been identified as the main accused in the case.

Earlier, the ED had questioned Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee, nephew of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, and alleged that he was among the beneficiaries of proceeds generated from the illegal coal trade.

Reacting strongly to the searches, Mamata Banerjee visited Jain’s residence in an official convoy and described the ED action as “politically motivated” and “unconstitutional”. ED officials, however, maintained that the searches were conducted “purely on the merits of the coal scam case and the proceeds of crime linked to it, and there was no political angle” involved.

They further stated that the operation was based on “specific” evidence indicating the “involvement” of Jain and others, adding that investigators were seizing relevant computer devices and documents. An official response from I-PAC to PTI’s query regarding the ED action was still awaited.

Condemning the searches, Mamata Banerjee said, "They have raided the residence of our IT chief. They are confiscating my party's documents and hard disks, which have details about our candidates for the Assembly polls. I have brought those back.”

She accused the central agency of attempting to seize hard disks, mobile phones, candidate lists and internal strategy papers belonging to the ruling party. “Is it the duty of the ED to collect a political party’s data,” she asked.

I-PAC was established by political strategist Prashant Kishor ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Kishor later went on to launch a political outfit, Jan Suraaj, which failed to win any seats in last year’s Bihar Assembly elections.

Following the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, I-PAC worked closely with the Trinamool Congress and the West Bengal government. The organisation’s website includes a section highlighting its role in supporting the Trinamool Congress and the state government during the 2021 Assembly elections, under the banner ‘Didi-R 10 Ongikar’.

As per its website, I-PAC collaborates with “visionary” leaders who have a “proven” track record, helping them frame citizen-focused agendas and execute strategies to effectively reach the public and mobilise mass support.