Calcutta High Court Permits TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee, Wife To Travel Abroad For Medical Treatment Amid Coal Scam Probe

The Calcutta High Court on Thursday allowed Trinamool Congress's National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee and his wife Rujira Banerjee to go to Dubai for medical treatment. This comes even as the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which is probing the two in a coal smuggling scam, opposed their travel.

Earlier in the day, Abhishek Banerjee had approached the High Court alleging that ED had denied him permission to travel to Dubai for medical treatment.

The Supreme Court last month had stayed the operation of a Delhi High Court order refusing to quash summons issued to the MP and his wife for appearance in New Delhi for interrogation in connection to the coal scam case. A Bench comprising Justices U.U. Lalit, S. Ravindra Bhat and Sudhanshu Dhulia had issued a host of directions and had also observed that it shall be open for the Directorate to require attendance of Banerjee in its office situated at Kolkata by giving at least 24 hours notice. 

The counsel appearing for Banerjee apprised Justice Bibek Chaudhuri that a letter had been written to the Assistant Director, Directorate of Enforcement on May 31 stating, inter alia, that he is suffering from eye ailment as well as Neurofibroma for which he is undergoing medical treatment which would require him to travel abroad and thus had prayed that his personal attendance may be excused for the time being.

The Court was further informed that he had booked air tickets for himself and his wife to travel from Kolkata to Dubai on June 1, 2022 and return ticket on June 10, 2022. However, the Enforcement Directorate had disallowed the petitioners' request to visit abroad on the apprehension that he and his wife are going to flee from this country to Dubai.

Allowing the TMC MLA and his wife to travel to Dubai for medical treatment, the Court observed, 

"Considering the instant application purely on humanitarian ground, this Court permits the petitioner no.1 and his wife to visit Moorfields Eye Hospital, Dubai, United Arab Emirates during the period between 2nd June, 2022 and 10th June, 2022."

Directing the petitioners to submit details about their accommodation and the hospital where the medical treatment will be sought, the Court underscored, 

"The petitioners shall submit the copies of the air tickets and the address where they would stay in Dubai during the particular period to the Enforcement Directorate with the phone numbers of the Hospital and the place of accommodation of the petitioners so that the Enforcement Directorate can keep a track of the whereabouts of the petitioners."

The petitioners were also asked to file a joint undertaking before the concerned authority of the Enforcement Directorate in Kolkata mentioning the aforementioned information and the date of return as fixed by the Court.

Pursuant to the perusal of the record, the Court noted that it is not the case of the Enforcement Directorate that the petitioners are not cooperating with the investigation. Opining further that right to life as enshrined under Article 21 of the Constitution includes the right to get proper medical treatment, the Court opined, 

 "It is needless to mention that the right to life is the most important fundamental right enshrined in the Constitution. Right to life includes right to get proper medical treatment. A person cannot be forced or compelled for medical treatment of a particular country if he feels that his medical treatment will be made more effectively in some hospitals situated in some foreign country. If a patient has means, he is at liberty to go to a doctor or to a hospital of his own choice State cannot restrict a patient from getting proper medical treatment of his choice."

The Court further opined that by permitting the petitioners to go abroad for medical treatment, the solemn directions of the Supreme Court are not getting violated. 

Case Title: Abhishek Banerjee & Anr v. The Union of India & Ors

Case Citation: 2022 LiveLaw (Cal) 222

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