I-PAC co-founder Pratik Jain under scanner after ED raids in Kolkata

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday conducted searches at the Kolkata office of political consultancy firm Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) and the residence of its co-founder and director Pratik Jain, as part of a money laundering investigation linked to an alleged multi-crore coal pilferage scam.

According to PTI, the searches began around 7 am and covered nearly 10 locations, including I-PAC’s office in Salt Lake and Jain’s residence on Loudon Street in Kolkata. Four premises in New Delhi were also searched. Central paramilitary forces were deployed during the operation.

Pratik Jain, an alumnus of IIT Bombay, is a co-founder of I-PAC, one of India’s most influential political consulting organisations. He is known for working behind the scenes on election strategy, data analytics and governance outreach programmes across states.

I-PAC has advised several political parties and governments, including the Trinamool Congress (TMC) in West Bengal. Jain currently heads the party’s IT cell and is believed to work closely with TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee. The consultancy is also said to play a significant role in campaign planning and candidate selection during Assembly elections.

Reacting to the raids, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee alleged that the ED attempted to seize sensitive Trinamool Congress documents and digital data. “They raided the residence of our IT chief and were confiscating party documents and hard disks containing details of our candidates for the Assembly polls. I have brought those back,” Banerjee told reporters.

The Chief Minister accused the Centre of misusing central agencies for political purposes and launched a sharp attack on Union Home Minister Amit Shah. “He cannot even protect the country. Democratic institutions are under threat. On one hand voters’ names are being deleted, and on the other, there are attempts to illegally access sensitive political data,” she said.

Banerjee further claimed that the raids were aimed at accessing Trinamool Congress’ election strategy, candidate lists for the 2026 Assembly elections, and other confidential organisational information.

The ED has not yet issued an official statement detailing the findings of the searches.