Kolkata: Calcutta High Court on Monday refused to grant interim relief to the Mamata Banerjee-led faction of Trinamool against the ED’s freeze on three of its bank accounts, observing that the remaining 36 accounts — holding around Rs 164 crore — remain unfrozen.
Justice Krishna Rao held that the ED’s freeze order showed the investigating officer had analysed the accounts and found “substantial transfer of funds to various entities.”
The court declined to adjudge at this stage whether the transfers were legal, noting that Trinamool would get the opportunity to place its grievances before the adjudicating authority once notices were issued, or before the court after exchange of affidavits. Affidavits have been directed to be filed within three weeks, with the next hearing on Aug 26.
Trinamool had argued that the ED could not have frozen the accounts as there was no predicate offence. Justice Rao, however, pointed to specific findings in the freeze order — noting that the FIR filed by Bidhannagar Police’s cyber wing corroborated the transfer of Rs 133.8 crore from one of the accounts to Carewell Aviation India Private Limited, which the court noted “appears to have been incorporated for the purpose of diversion of funds from AITC accounts.”
The freeze order also mentioned that other transactions from the accounts had been routed for the purpose of siphoning off and using them for personal purposes by the persons authorising control over the accounts, unrelated to the mandated purpose.