SC Denies TMC Plea Over Frozen Bank Accounts
Supreme Court declines interim relief to Mamata Banerjee-led faction; asks Calcutta High Court to expedite proceedings
- Supreme Court declines interim relief to Mamata-led TMC faction.
- Dispute concerns four debit-restricted accounts holding around ₹804 crore.
- Court asks Calcutta High Court to expedite the proceedings.
- TMC name and symbol dispute remains before the Election Commission.
GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 1st Oct: The Supreme Court on Thursday declined to interfere with a Calcutta High Court order concerning four bank accounts of the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC) faction that have been subjected to debit restrictions.
A bench comprising Justices M M Sundresh and P B Varale said it was not inclined to exercise its jurisdiction under Article 136 and asked the High Court to expedite the hearing. The bench refrained from commenting on the merits of the dispute.
The TMC faction had approached the Supreme Court after the Calcutta High Court declined to grant interim relief allowing unrestricted operation of the accounts. The accounts contain around ₹804 crore, according to the petition.
The Supreme Court also took note of the ongoing dispute over the TMC’s name and election symbol. The Election Commission has frozen the original party name and symbol pending adjudication of the competing claims between rival factions.
The Calcutta High Court had earlier permitted the Mamata-led faction to meet day-to-day party expenses from certain frozen accounts under the supervision of a special officer. The arrangement was subsequently extended until January 29, 2027, with the court noting that the Election Commission had yet to decide which faction would control the party’s name and symbol.
The TMC had challenged the freezing of its accounts, arguing that there were shortcomings in the FIRs associated with the action and seeking permission to operate four accounts maintained with public-sector banks.
The wider dispute over the party’s name and symbol has also reached the Supreme Court. The court has directed the Election Commission to resolve the factional dispute within a specified timeframe after completion of pleadings.
