The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday informed the Calcutta High Court that it would on a covering letter certify that 16 files downloaded by an officer during a raid at the office of Leaps and Bounds Pvt Ltd will not be used in any evidence in any criminal proceedings by the ED or any other agency.
Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee had filed an application claiming that in the interregnum period before the court passed its judgement on his petition challenging a summon to him by the ED, a raid was conducted at the office of Leaps and Bounds, of which he is the chief executive officer and for a limited period of time, was also one of its directors.
Banerjee’s counsel Kishore Dutta expressed apprehension during the previous hearing that the 16 downloaded files had something to do with an investigation being carried out in connection with alleged school jobs irregularities, while additional solicitor general SV Raju, appearing for the ED, submitted that the same had nothing to do with the search and seizure which was carried out at the said office.
Raju had stated that it was only out of anxiety that one of the ED officers after the search and seizure was over was checking hostel accommodation for his child in the company’s computer, the hard disc of which was not seized.
On Monday, Raju submitted before Justice Tirthankar Ghosh that the ED would on a covering letter certify that these 16 downloaded files would not be used in any evidence in any criminal proceedings by the ED or any other agency.
The court directed that a printout of the contents of the downloaded files would be taken out in the mode and manner as prescribed under the regular guidelines of Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL), Kolkata.
Justice Ghosh directed that the printout should be produced before the court on September 6 at 4.30 pm by the CFSL in a sealed cover.
