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The biggest news of this time is coming out from the political and legal circles of West Bengal. The Calcutta High Court has given a huge interim relief to the Mamata Banerjee-led All India Trinamool Congress (AITC). The court has allowed the party to use the three bank accounts, which were recently debit-frozen, to meet its daily expenses and pay salaries to its employees. However, the court has also added a big condition to this relief. Now these accounts will be operated completely under the strict supervision of a special officer appointed by the court. While giving this important decision, the single bench of Justice Saugata Bhattacharya of the High Court has also raised serious questions on the functioning of the police.
Accounts work will be done under the supervision of former judge till 30th September
Considering the sensitivity of the matter, the Calcutta High Court has appointed former judge of the court, Justice Subrata Talukdar, as ‘Special Officer’ to operate these accounts. This special monitoring arrangement will remain effective till 30 September 2026. During this period, Trinamool Congress will be able to withdraw limited funds only for its essential daily expenses and payment of salaries to its office employees. The court has made it clear that any kind of big or suspicious financial transactions will not be allowed at all from these accounts. For this work, the special officer will be given an honorarium of Rs 1.25 lakh, which will have to be borne by the Kalighat-based Mamata Banerjee faction-based Trinamool Congress.
Action immediately after FIR? Court angry over police’s haste
During the hearing, the High Court expressed strong objection to the timing and speed of the action taken by Bidhannagar Police. The court commented that it was completely unable to understand why the police showed such “haste” in freezing the party’s accounts within just 24 hours of the FIR being registered. The court did not see any solid and justifiable basis behind this quick action of the police, after which this interim relief was provided to the Mamata Banerjee faction.
Abhishek Manu Singhvi’s argument: Attempt to eliminate ‘equal opportunity’ in democracy
Country’s veteran and senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi presented the stand on behalf of All India Trinamool Congress in the court. Singhvi argued that such a sudden and complete freezing of the bank accounts of a recognized national/regional political party is a direct violation of Articles 19(1)(a) and 19(1)(d) of the Constitution. He told the court that by such action the basic principle of democracy i.e. ‘level playing field’ is completely destroyed. Terming the complaints filed by the opponents as completely vague and politically motivated, Singhvi said that sealing the bank accounts within two days is only a malicious step.
What is this whole controversy of Rs 440 crore and ED’s angle?
This entire matter is related to the fierce internal factionalism going on within the Trinamool Congress and the investigation by the central investigating agencies. At present, the party seems to be divided into two clear factions, in which one faction is led by Mamata Banerjee, while the command of the rebel faction is in the hands of opposition leader Ritabrata Banerjee. The dispute is over funds worth Rs 440 crore deposited in three accounts of the party in HDFC Bank branches.
Ten rebel MLAs and former treasurer Arup Biswas, supporters of Ritabrata Banerjee, had complained to the police that the source of this huge fund could be illegal extortion and recent scams. On the basis of this complaint, Bidhannagar police took immediate action and froze the accounts. Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) is also conducting a parallel investigation under Prevention of Money Laundering (PMLA) in this case. ED alleges that Rs 160 crore was transferred from TMC’s accounts to a private company named ‘Carewell Aviation’ for chartered flights and VIP helicopters.
Who is the real TMC? At present the ball is in the court of the Election Commission
The Calcutta High Court has made it very clear in its interim order that allowing the Mamata Banerjee faction to withdraw money from the accounts should not at all be interpreted to mean that the Court has accepted them as the “real” Trinamool Congress. The court said that the final decision on who owns the real party and the symbol is pending before the Election Commission of India (ECI) and it will take a decision on it. The High Court has also given clear instructions that until the final decision of the Election Commission comes, rebel Ritabrata Banerjee’s group will not be able to have any kind of contact or interference with the Special Officer in this matter of financial operations.