'Nobody Is Above You': Mamata Banerjee Turns to CJI on Stage Amid ED Storm, Alleges 'Targeting' By Agencies

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday, launched a veiled attack on the BJP, urging the judiciary to protect the Constitution and democracy from a "disaster". Addressing the gathering at the inauguration of the new building of the Circuit Bench, Jalpaiguri of the High Court at Calcutta, Banerjee, in the presence of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant, urged the judiciary to safeguard democracy and prevent "agencies" from deliberate targeting. Her remarks come days after high-drama erupted during the Enforcement Directorate's (ED) raids against I-PAC in Kolkata. The Chief Minister said, "Nowadays, few things are important: the Constitution, citizens of this country, the judiciary, and the media. My humble regards to all of you,

please take care of our new generation. The junior lawyers are struggling. They are not getting proper benefits. We want to see that they get proper benefits. My request to Chief Justice and all the judges is that please see, our Constitution must be protected from disaster, our democracy must be protected from disaster and our safety, security, history, geography and boundary - all should be protected.""The judiciary is the custodian of our Constitution. It is our request on behalf of all the people of this country that there should not be any casteism or religionism. Let us work together, let us speak for unity, let us think for unity, let us work for unity," she added.Also Read:'They Commit Theft, Then Sit On Dharna': ED Vs Mamata Banerjee In Supreme Court As I-PAC Raid Drama Explodes"The media should not go for a media trial before finalising any cases. Nowadays, this is a trend of maligning people. So many agencies are defaming; there are deliberate attempts to defame. Please protect the people...Save democracy, save people, save democracy, save country, save constitution. We are under your custody. You are the guardians of the Constitution," Banerjee said.She also alleged that the Centre was stopping funds to West Bengal. "My Law Minister, please don't mind, though the Government of India stopped this fund, we are continuing 88 fast track courts. Out of that, 52 are for women and seven POCSO courts," she stated.

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I-PAC raids row: What happened?

Earlier this month, ED officials faced obstructions during the probe agency's raids at the office of political consultancy firm I-PAC in Salt Lake and the residence of its chief, Pratik Jain, in Kolkata in connection with a coal smuggling case. The probe agency has claimed that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee entered the premises during the raids and took away "key" evidence related to the probe. The chief minister, on the other hand, has accused the central agency of overreach and claimed that the agency was trying to get its hands on her party's documents. (With agency inputs)