LI Network
Published on: 05 September 2023 at 21:40 IST
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has informed the Calcutta High Court that it will issue a formal certification, along with a covering letter, declaring that the 16 files downloaded during a raid at the Leaps and Bounds Pvt Ltd office will not be utilized as evidence in any criminal proceedings, either by the ED or any other investigative agency.
This development comes in response to an application filed by Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee, who had contested a summons issued to him by the ED.
Banerjee raised concerns about a raid conducted at the Leaps and Bounds office, where he serves as the chief executive officer and, for a limited period, was also a director.
During the previous hearing, Banerjee’s counsel, Kishore Dutta, expressed suspicions that the 16 downloaded files might pertain to an investigation related to alleged irregularities in school job appointments.
In contrast, Additional solicitor general SV Raju, representing the ED, clarified that these files were unrelated to the search and seizure carried out at the office.
Raju explained that one of the ED officers had checked hostel accommodations for his child on the company’s computer after the search and seizure, as the hard disc of that computer was not seized. He emphasized that this action was driven by personal concerns rather than any official investigative purpose.
In a recent update, Raju informed Justice Tirthankar Ghosh that the ED would provide a formal certification in a covering letter, confirming that the 16 downloaded files would not be used as evidence in any criminal proceedings.
Additionally, the court directed that the contents of these files should be printed in accordance with the regular guidelines of the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) in Kolkata.
The printout is scheduled to be presented to the court on September 6 at 4:30 pm, securely sealed.