ED director on 3-day Kol visit to review agency ops
Times of India | 22 January 2026
Kolkata: Enforcement Directorate director Rahul Naveen is likely to reach Kolkata on Thursday on a three-day visit to review the operations of the central investigating agency. Naveen may also meet governor C V Ananda Bose.
Naveen is likely to meet the officers present at the Jan 8 search operations at the office of political consultancy firm Indian PAC Consulting Private Limited (I-PAC) and the residence of its director, Pratik Jain. This will be Naveen's first visit to Kolkata after the searches at the I-PAC office set off a major political controversy.
Meanwhile, the ED moved the Calcutta High Court and later the Supreme Court alleging that Bengal police obstructed the officials in discharging their duties and termed the interference as a "flagrant and blatant disregard for the law".
Chief minister Mamata Banerjee was made respondent No. 2 in the ED's criminal writ petition before the apex court, demanding action against those who allegedly obstructed the agency's Jan 8 search operation. The SC has already issued notices to the CM and her officers, including state DGP Rajeev Kumar, commissioner of Kolkata Police Manoj Verma, DCP South Kolkata Priyabrata Roy, and the CBI.
The ED's plea also made the Union home secretary and the DoPT secretary, besides Bengal's chief secretary, respondents in the case, whose next hearing in the SC is in the first week of Feb. The ED's money laundering probe is linked to a coal scam case in which the prime accused, Anup Majee, is accused of illegally excavating coal from ECL leasehold areas of Bengal and selling it to various factories and plants in Bankura, Bardhaman, Purulia, and other districts.
In 2024, Naveen flew down to Kolkata after ED officers were attacked while conducting searches at the residence of Sheikh Shahjahan.
Meanwhile, the ED was in talks with the central security forces for enhanced security arrangements for the officers during the raids. Naveen is also expected to take feedback from ED officers on the overall working conditions and security arrangements for them and the office premises, sources said.