Kolkata/New Delhi, Jul 8 (PTI) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday said it has frozen three bank accounts of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), holding deposits worth Rs 440 crore, under the anti-money laundering law following searches in an alleged funds misappropriation case.

There was no immediate response from the political party.

The central agency said in a statement that the orders were issued under Section 17 (1A) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). This section authorises an ED officer to freeze an asset (like a bank deposit) when it is not practicable to seize such a property and it is essential that the asset is not transferred or otherwise dealt with.

Such an order has to be confirmed by the adjudicating authority of the PMLA within a fixed time period.

An amount of Rs 440.42 crore is held in the three HDFC Bank accounts of the TMC, the ED said.

In a related development, the private bank, where these accounts of the TMC are held, filed a report before the Calcutta High Court as directed to disclose the corpus held in these accounts.

The court did not open the report and the hearing was adjourned till Thursday.

The ED on Tuesday raided five premises in Kolkata including those belonging to a private jet and charter hiring company named Carewell Aviation India Pvt. Ltd.

The agency undertook this action after taking cognisance of an FIR filed by Kolkata police (Bidhannagar cyber wing) regarding allegations of dishonest financial dealings, unlawful money collection, and routing suspected funds through certain bank accounts of the TMC, which was recently ousted from power in West Bengal by the BJP.

A response from the Kolkata-based non-scheduled aircraft operator to a PTI query was awaited at the time of filing this story.

According to the agency, its preliminary investigation found that about Rs 160 crore was transferred from the TMC's bank accounts to Carewell Aviation and its related entity between April 2023 and June 2026.

"Carewell Aviation routed an amount of Rs 82.96 crore during 2023-2026 to another newly incorporated related entity for purchasing an aircraft Embrarer Legacy 600 and a chopper Agusta 109 GrandNew.

"An amount of Rs 112 crore was used for making the said purchases," the ED said.

The agency said that an amount of USD 1.7 million was arranged as "unsecured" loan in 2023 from a Cayman Islands-based entity to purchase the said helicopter.

These two flying assets were "rented" to the TMC, even though they were purchased from the corpus of the party, the ED alleged.

"Thereafter, substantial amounts were transferred on the pretext of aircraft usage." The ED said the above stated "dubious" arrangement was under investigation to ascertain the actual beneficial purpose of the transactions.

Last month, Kolkata police froze debit operations on these same three bank accounts based on complaints from the TMC's rebel MLAs seeking a probe into the source of the funds, amid an ongoing bitter internal battle over control of the party's war chest. PTI NES ZMN

Money laundering asset freezing under PMLA targets suspected bank deposits and linked transactions pending confirmation. Freezing of bank deposits under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act operates where an asset cannot practicably be seized and must be protected from transfer or other dealing. An officer may issue a freezing order in respect of bank accounts containing suspected proceeds or linked funds, subject to confirmation by the adjudicating authority within the prescribed time. The investigation also concerns alleged routing of funds through related entities and purchases of aircraft and helicopter assets through connected transactions.