The Supreme Court on Wednesday sharply questioned alleged interference by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee during an Enforcement Directorate (ED) raid, saying such actions could endanger democratic processes.
"This is not a dispute between the Centre and the state. A chief minister of any state just walks in in the midst of an inquiry or investigation, puts democracy in peril and then you say it is a dispute between the Centre and the state," a bench of Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and N V Anjaria said.
The court was hearing a petition by the ED alleging obstruction by Banerjee and state officials during a January 8 search of the Kolkata office of Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) as part of a money-laundering investigation.
"This (alleged obstruction) is per se an act committed by an individual who happens to be the chief minister of a state, keeping the whole system and democracy in jeopardy," Justice Mishra observed.
Senior advocate Menaka Guruswamy, appearing for a West Bengal official, argued the matter was essentially a dispute between the central and state governments and questioned the maintainability of the ED’s plea.
"I am on the maintainability.... There was no misconduct, there was no intimidation to any officer," she said.
The bench rejected suggestions to refer the case to a larger bench. "We will decide whether an Article-32 petition in maintainable or not. What is the substantial question of law which requires consideration by a five-judge bench?" it asked.
The judges also noted the broader context of the case, calling it an "extraordinary situation."
"This is an extraordinary situation. Before the other bench where the SIR (Special Intensive Revision of the electoral roll) is under question, we have seen the situation where several judicial officers were kept hostage. Now, you want that the petitioners (the ED and its officials) should have gone to a magistrate with a section-200 (CrPC) complaint?" the bench said.
"We cannot shut our eyes from the reality of what is happening. We cannot lose sight of the practical situation which is present at the spot in the state," Justice Mishra added.
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