SC Denies Mamata-Led TMC Access To 4 Frozen Accounts Holding Rs 804 Crore

The Supreme Court on Thursday declined to allow the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC) faction to operate four bank accounts whose debit transactions have been frozen, leaving access to around Rs 804 crore locked pending adjudication of the larger dispute over the party’s identity, finances and election symbol.

A bench of Justices MM Sundresh and PB Varale refused to interfere with an earlier order of the Calcutta High Court, which had denied interim relief to the faction. The Supreme Court said it was not examining the merits of the dispute at this stage and asked the High Court to expedite the proceedings.

The bench noted that the Election Commission has frozen the party’s name and symbol, and that the question of which faction is legally entitled to the funds therefore remains pending. “We refrain from going into the merits,” the court said while declining to exercise its jurisdiction under Article 136.

The dispute over the accounts is part of a wider internal battle over control of the TMC. The four accounts with public sector banks were debit-frozen following police action, while the Mamata-led faction has challenged the move, arguing that there were shortcomings in the FIRs on the basis of which the accounts were frozen.

The Calcutta High Court had on August 27 refused to grant interim permission to operate the accounts. It had observed that such an order could undermine an earlier arrangement under which the party was permitted to meet its day-to-day expenses despite the freeze.

The financial dispute comes amid a separate contest between rival TMC factions over the party’s name and Flowers and Grass symbol. The Supreme Court has asked the Election Commission to resolve that larger dispute within a fixed timeframe, making the ownership of the party’s organisational identity and assets a continuing legal issue.

For now, Thursday’s Supreme Court order means the Rs 804 crore in the four accounts cannot be accessed by the Mamata-led faction under the relief sought, while the substantive issues remain before the High Court and the Election Commission.