Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday mounted a sharp attack on the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the Supreme Court, accusing the central agency of acting with political intent by raiding the Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) office ahead of elections.

Senior counsel appearing for Banerjee told the court that the allegation that the Chief Minister had taken electronic devices during the raid was a “blatant lie”. It was clarified that Banerjee had taken only election-related documents, which were confidential in nature.

The Chief Minister argued that all polling data, campaign strategy and voter information handled by I-PAC were sensitive and protected. “If our election strategy is leaked, how do we fight polls?” Banerjee was quoted as asking, asserting that the material had no connection with any financial investigation.

ALSO READ | IPAC raids case: ED moves SC seeking suspension of Bengal DGP Rajiv Kumar

Questioning the timing of the action, Banerjee asked why the ED chose to raid the I-PAC office just before elections, despite being aware that the firm was engaged in political consultancy and held confidential poll-related material.

ALSO READ | Who is Pratik Jain? The iPAC co-founder at the centre of ED raids

Addressing the court, her counsel said the ED knew that I-PAC dealt with election data and campaign strategy, yet proceeded with the raid, raising serious concerns over misuse of investigative powers during the electoral process.