The Enforcement Directorate has triggered major political turmoil in West Bengal by freezing bank deposits worth Rs 440.42 crore belonging to the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) party. Acting under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), officials issued orders on Tuesday night freezing three key HDFC Bank accounts held by the party, as part of a broader investigation into cyber fraud and illegal foreign fund diversion.
The action stems from serious allegations that proceeds from a large-scale cyber fraud, which had caused nationwide uproar, were routed through various channels into TMC’s official bank accounts. As part of the probe, ED officials conducted simultaneous raids on Tuesday across five locations in Kolkata and the Delhi-NCR region, including the offices of charter and private aviation company Carewell Aviation India Private Limited and its group entities.
According to ED’s preliminary findings, around Rs 160 crore was transferred from TMC accounts to Carewell Aviation and its subsidiaries between April 2023 and June 2026, of which Rs 82.96 crore was further diverted to another shell company. These funds were allegedly used to purchase an Embraer Legacy 600 private jet and an Agusta 109 SP helicopter at a combined cost of Rs 112 crore.
The twist emerged when investigators found that Carewell subsequently leased the same jet and helicopter back to TMC at inflated rates, allegedly a scheme to funnel money back to the party while concealing the real beneficiaries, with the aircraft reportedly used for leaders’ campaign travel. ED is now also probing whether foreign funds were used in the purchases, and rebel TMC MLAs had earlier complained to West Bengal police about the alleged diversion, dealing a further blow to a party already reeling from recent election losses and internal rifts.
With accounts frozen, TMC approached the Calcutta High Court, which granted temporary relief by lifting the freeze, noting that a recognized political party’s daily expenses could not be entirely blocked. However, the court appointed retired Justice Subrata Talukdar as an observer to monitor how the party utilizes its funds going forward, even as ED’s core money laundering investigation continues amid a charged political atmosphere in Bengal.