{"id":4778,"date":"2026-01-09T12:50:02","date_gmt":"2026-01-09T12:50:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jubaglobal.com\/?p=4778"},"modified":"2026-01-09T12:50:03","modified_gmt":"2026-01-09T12:50:03","slug":"political-storm-in-bengal-mamata-banerjee-leads-massive-protest-march-against-ed-raids-on-i-pac","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/political-storm-in-bengal-mamata-banerjee-leads-massive-protest-march-against-ed-raids-on-i-pac\/","title":{"rendered":"Political Storm in Bengal: Mamata Banerjee Leads Massive Protest March Against ED Raids on I-PAC"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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January 9, 2026<\/strong> \u2013 West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo Mamata Banerjee took to the streets of Kolkata on Friday, leading a massive protest march against the Enforcement Directorate\u2019s (ED) raids on the offices and residence of political consultancy firm Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC). Thousands of TMC supporters, leaders, ministers, MPs, and MLAs joined the rally, raising slogans against the BJP-led central government for alleged misuse of central agencies ahead of the crucial 2026 assembly elections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The march, starting from Jadavpur\u2019s 8B Bus Stand and proceeding towards Hazra More in south Kolkata, marked a dramatic escalation in the ongoing confrontation between the state government and central probe agencies. Banerjee accused the ED of attempting to steal TMC\u2019s internal data and election strategies, framing the raids as a politically motivated attack to weaken the opposition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Trigger: Dramatic ED Raids and Banerjee\u2019s Intervention<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The protests stem from Thursday\u2019s (January 8, 2026) ED searches at multiple premises linked to I-PAC, including its Sector V office in Salt Lake and the Loudon Street residence of its director, Pratik Jain (also spelled Prateek Jain). The raids, part of a money laundering probe connected to an alleged coal smuggling scam from 2020, covered 10 locations across Kolkata and Delhi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a high-drama sequence, Mamata Banerjee made surprise visits to both sites during the ongoing operations. At Jain\u2019s residence, she was seen exiting with files and electronic devices, which the ED later alleged were \u201ckey evidence\u201d forcibly removed. The agency claimed the searches were proceeding peacefully until Banerjee arrived with a large police contingent, obstructing the probe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Banerjee defended her actions vigorously, stating, \u201cWhat I did yesterday was nothing wrong; they tried to steal my party\u2019s data.\u201d She likened it to self-defense: \u201cIf someone comes to kill me, don\u2019t I have the right to self-defence?\u201d The TMC chief further alleged that the ED was targeting confidential party documents unrelated to any financial irregularity, including candidate lists and strategies for the upcoming polls. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Street Power on Display: Rally Signals Election Mode<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Friday\u2019s rally showcased TMC\u2019s organizational strength, with crowds chanting against \u201cBJP\u2019s misuse of agencies\u201d and \u201cassault on democracy.\u201d Banerjee addressed the gathering, condemning the Centre\u2019s tactics and vowing victory in 2026. \u201cWe will win the Bengal assembly polls,\u201d she declared, accusing the BJP of similar manipulations in other states like Maharashtra.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Parallel protests erupted elsewhere: TMC MPs, including Mahua Moitra and Derek O\u2019Brien, staged a dharna outside Union Home Minister Amit Shah\u2019s office in Delhi, leading to their detention. Banerjee slammed the police action as \u201cshameful.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ED approached the Calcutta High Court, seeking action against alleged obstruction by Banerjee and state police. Jain\u2019s family filed complaints alleging theft during raids, while Kolkata Police registered cases against ED officials. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I-PAC\u2019s Role: From Prashant Kishor to TMC\u2019s Key Strategist<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Founded by poll strategist Prashant Kishor, I-PAC has been instrumental in TMC\u2019s electoral successes since 2021, including the assembly and Lok Sabha polls. Though Kishor parted ways earlier, the firm\u2014now led by Jain\u2014continues managing TMC campaigns, making it a vital asset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Opposition parties view the raids as equivalent to targeting a party office, heightening concerns over agency misuse against non-BJP rulers. BJP leaders countered, alleging evidence tampering and calling for unveiling \u201cfrauds\u201d linked to I-PAC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Broader Implications: Heating Up Ahead of 2026 Polls<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

With West Bengal assembly elections looming, this episode underscores deepening Centre-state tensions. Banerjee\u2019s street protest revives her trademark agitation style, energizing the base while portraying TMC as a victim of vendetta politics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As legal battles unfold in court and political rhetoric intensifies, the I-PAC raids have set the tone for a fiercely contested 2026\u2014where agency actions, data security, and federalism will dominate discourse. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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January 9, 2026 \u2013 West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo Mamata Banerjee…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1199,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[783,830,839,643,1,782],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4778","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-asia","category-breaking-news","category-india","category-more-articles","category-news","category-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4778","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1199"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4778"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4778\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4783,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4778\/revisions\/4783"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4778"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4778"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directtopic.com\/jubaglobal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4778"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}