ED 'stole' party data: Didi; CM part of 'robbery', says agency

NEW DELHI: The hearing on Mamata Banerjee vs Enforcement Directorate in Supreme Court witnessed sharp exchange of words with the former blaming the agency for trying to "steal" data and information of its party ahead of assembly election and the central agency accusing the CM of "robbery and dacoity" as she took away a phone and laptop from the spot where raid was going on.As the court proceedings in the case got noisy with lawyers from opposing sides indulging in allegations and counter allegations, a bench of Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and Vipul M Pancholi asked them not to cause "ruckus" inside court room on the line of what happened in Calcutta high court. Noting that the HC was not able to hold proceedings on the first day of hearing, the bench said that it is disturbing.Blaming TMC sympathisers for the ruckus in HC, solicitor general Tushar Mehta said legal cell of the TMC circulated WhatsApp messages asking people to gather in the court and huge number of advocates turned up in the courtroom and created a commotion.

"This is what happens when mobocracy replaces democracy!," he said."Come everyone"? As if it's Jantar Mantar!", the bench remarked on SG's submission.The opposite side said that emotion was running high on first day but hearing was very smooth in HC on Wednesday.Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the CM that ED had raided the premises of I-PAC to steal Trinamool's data and information for the coming assembly election.

But additional solicitor general S V Raju told SC that the CM committed the offence of robbery and dacoity by forcefully taking away files and devices from the custody of the agency when the raid was going on. He said that FIR be filed against her and the case be probed by CBI as the state police cannot probe against her as she is home minister of the state and police works under her.Sibal told SC that she took away an I-Phone and a laptop.