The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday forcefully rejected West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's justification for her dramatic personal intervention during Enforcement Directorate (ED) raids at the offices of the Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) in Kolkata. Senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad suggested that her real compulsion was to remove evidence potentially linking the proceeds of the alleged "coal scam" to her party, the Trinamool Congress (TMC).
BJP's Scathing Attack on Mamata's Motives
Ravi Shankar Prasad, a BJP Lok Sabha member, directly challenged Banerjee's claim that she visited the raid site in her capacity as the TMC president. He highlighted the unusual nature of a sitting Chief Minister personally retrieving files during a central agency operation. Prasad pointedly asked why she felt the need to clutch a specific green file that was taken away during the searches.
"Why did a CM have to personally retrieve a file during a raid? What specific incriminating evidence was in that green file?" Prasad questioned. He speculated that the file could contain details such as names of coal scam beneficiaries, involved TMC leaders, the hawala money route, or a list of officers who facilitated the smuggling.
Allegations of Hawala Money and Political Violence
The BJP leader further alleged that Banerjee's "desperation" might be connected to the channeling of hawala money to fund her party's campaign during the last Goa assembly elections. He dismissed her assertion that the ED was attempting to steal her party's election strategy and candidate list as a diversionary tactic.
In a separate but related charge, Prasad hit out at the West Bengal government over an alleged attack on the convoy of state BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari. He claimed that no First Information Report (FIR) was registered by the state police despite the BJP's complaint. Prasad accused the state administration of allowing BJP functionaries to frequently face violence, often in the presence of police personnel.
Escalating Political Confrontation in Bengal
The incident marks a significant escalation in the ongoing political confrontation between the BJP and the ruling TMC in West Bengal. The ED's raids on I-PAC, a political consultancy that has worked with the TMC, and the subsequent personal involvement of the Chief Minister have become a major flashpoint. The BJP's allegations directly link the state's top executive to an ongoing central probe into illegal coal mining and financial irregularities, setting the stage for a fierce political and legal battle in the coming days.
