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- Supreme Court Approval Required For Money Laundering Case Against Government Employees
New Delhi19 minutes ago
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A bench of Justices Abhay S Oak and AJ Masih rejected the ED’s plea.
The Supreme Court has said that it is necessary to obtain approval from the concerned authority of the government before initiating a case against public servants accused of money laundering while on duty.
The court said on Wednesday that there is a provision under Section 197 (1) of the CRPC that approval has to be taken from the government to prosecute a case against government officials and judges. This provision is now also applicable in the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
Actually, ED had filed charges of money laundering against Andhra Pradesh bureaucrat Bibhu Prasad Acharya. Which was rejected by the Telangana High Court in 2019 for running the case without the approval of the government.
ED had reached the Supreme Court against this, where on Wednesday the bench of Justice Abhay S Oak and Justice AJ Masih also rejected the petition. The court said that the provision of seeking government approval before prosecuting a case under PMLA is to protect honest and loyal officers.
3 charges against ED officer
- ED had accused Bibhu Prasad Acharya of misusing his official position during the allotment of government land.
- ED said Bibhu undervalued the properties. These irregularities benefited private companies linked to former Andhra Pradesh CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. The government suffered financial loss due to this.
- Apart from this, ED alleged that Bibhu conspired with big political figures to facilitate these transactions. Complete information regarding ED’s allegations has not been revealed yet.
The officer said in the High Court – Whatever I did, I did it within my jurisdiction. When this matter reached the High Court in 2019, it was argued on behalf of IAS officer Bibhu that whatever action he took was within his official capacity. Bibhu had said in the court that before prosecuting him, it is necessary to take approval from the competent authority of the government under Section 197 of CRPC.
ED’s argument in High Court – no approval required for PMLA Against this, the High Court had argued in the ED that the allegations involve misuse of official power for private gain and in such a situation, the protection given in Section 197 of CrPC does not apply here. ED had said that PMLA is a special act. No approval is required in this case. Telangana High Court had given its verdict in favor of Bibhu after hearing the arguments from both the sides.
The purpose of PMLA is to prevent money laundering.
Money laundering is converting black money into legal income. PMLA was implemented in the country in 2005. The objective is to stop money laundering and confiscate the property acquired from it. All crimes registered under PMLA are investigated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
ED is a special agency under the Revenue Department of the Finance Ministry, which conducts financial investigations. ED was formed on 1 May 1956. In 1957 its name was changed to ‘Enforcement Directorate’.
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Also read this news related to PMLA…
Supreme Court said – If the matter is in the court, if the accused appears on summons then ED cannot arrest him.
The Supreme Court said that if a money laundering case has reached the Special Court, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) cannot arrest the accused under Section 19 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The bench gave this order on the decision of Punjab and Haryana High Court to reject the pre-arrest bail petition of the accused. Read the full news…
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