The Aryavarth Express
Kolkata (West Bengal): West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) chairperson Mamata Banerjee on Friday led a protest in Kolkata against the Enforcement Directorate (ED), a day after the central agency carried out raids at the office of political consultancy firm I-PAC.
Addressing supporters, Banerjee strongly criticised the BJP-led central government, accusing it of misusing central agencies and suppressing democratic dissent. She also condemned the detention of TMC Members of Parliament in Delhi, alleging that elected representatives were being targeted for exercising their right to protest.
“Dignity and respect in a democracy are non-negotiable,” Banerjee said, asserting that citizens and lawmakers cannot be treated arbitrarily by those in power.
Earlier in the day, several TMC MPs were detained in the national capital while protesting outside Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s office against the ED raid on the I-PAC office.
In a post on X, the Chief Minister strongly condemned the police action against her party’s MPs. “Dragging elected representatives on the streets for exercising their democratic right to protest is not law enforcement, it is arrogance in uniform. This is a democracy, not the BJP’s private property,” she wrote. Banerjee also accused the BJP of following double standards, claiming that opposition leaders are detained and humiliated while BJP leaders are given privileges during protests.
She further asserted that dignity in a democracy is a right, not a favour, and warned that intolerance towards dissent undermines constitutional values.
Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate accused Mamata Banerjee of entering the residential premises of Prateek Jain, director of I-PAC, during an ongoing search operation in Kolkata and allegedly taking away “key evidence,” including physical documents and electronic devices.
In a statement, the ED said its search proceedings were being conducted in a peaceful and professional manner until the arrival of the Chief Minister, accompanied by a large number of police personnel.
The situation remains politically charged as the ED probe and the protests continue to draw sharp reactions from both sides.
