New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to lift the debit freeze on four bank accounts of Trinamool Congress (TMC) and asked the Calcutta High Court to expedite the hearing of the party’s plea challenging the freeze.
A bench of justices MM Sundresh and PB Varale said it was not inclined to exercise its jurisdiction under Article 136 at this stage. It made it clear that it was refraining from examining the merits of the dispute. “We refrain from going into the merits. We are not inclined to exercise our jurisdiction under Article 136. We request the high court to expedite the hearing,” the bench said.
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The top court was hearing Mamata Banerjee-led TMC’s challenge to the freezing of four Indian Bank accounts following a complaint by a member of a rival faction of the party.
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for TMC, sought interim relief, contending that the freeze was paralysing the functioning of the political party. He said that the four accounts involved in the present proceedings were distinct from three HDFC Bank accounts that had earlier been frozen in connection with a separate proceeding and were subsequently permitted to be operated under the supervision of an administrator for day-to-day expenses.
“The paralysis occurs because my audited accounts show day-to-day expenses. No political expenses. Every day a political party’s oxygen is paralysed. Byelections are coming,” Singhvi said. He said TMC requires at least ₹12.15 crore a month to sustain its operations, apart from expenses relating to byelections and legal costs.
The bench suggested that the court-appointed administrator who had been supervising the operation of the earlier accounts could also deal with the four Indian Bank accounts that have been frozen. Singhvi agreed to the suggestion. The court, however, declined to pass any order permitting operation of the accounts.
