- PM Modi visit USAOnly the mirror in my washroom and phone gallery see the crazy me : Sara KhanKarnataka rain fury: Photos of flooded streets, uprooted treesCannes 2022: Deepika Padukone stuns at the French Riviera in Sabyasachi outfitRanbir Kapoor And Alia Bhatt's Wedding Pics - Sealed With A KissOscars 2022: Every Academy Award WinnerShane Warne (1969-2022): Australian cricket legend's life in picturesPhotos: What Russia's invasion of Ukraine looks like on the groundLata Mangeshkar (1929-2022): A pictorial tribute to the 'Nightingale of India'PM Modi unveils 216-feet tall Statue of Equality in Hyderabad (PHOTOS)
The 18-year-old, Chirag Chikkara clinched a gold medal in the men’s freestyle 57kg categ
- FIFA president Infantino confirms at least 9 African teams for the 2026 World Cup
- Hockey, cricket, wrestling, badminton, squash axed from 2026 CWG in Glasgow
- FIFA : Over 100 female footballers urge FIFA to reconsider partnership with Saudi oil giant
- Ecuador ready to make history against Uruguay: Beccacece
- Divanshi wins second gold as India sweep women's 25m standard pistol at Lima Junior Worlds
ED chief seeks independent power for agency Last Updated : 30 Apr 2017 04:15:23 AM IST Enforcement Directorate chief Karnal Singh (file photo)
Enforcement Directorate chief Karnal Singh on Saturday requested the government "empower" his agency to register and pursue cases independently even after courts quash any of them registered initially by other investigating authority.
In his address at an event marking the Enforcement Directorate Day here where Finance Minister Arun Jaitley was the chief guest along with Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia, he said the agency is facing the problem continuously and "it should be changed" considering its investigating methods under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
"The ED should be given independent power to register and pursue any case. It is in a three-legged race. Courts feel if any case initially registered by any investigation agency is thrown out, the ED case will automatically fail," he said.
Singh said the Enforcement Directorate can file a case only on the basis of FIRs registered by other agencies like Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and National Investigation Agency (NIA) and does not have the power to take up an anti-money laundering investigation independently.Giving example of Aircel-Maxis 2G spectrum case, he said they had to appeal against the recent order of a court which declared this case invalid and "groundless" for their probe was on the basis of CBI inquiry that had filed an FIR in it initially.
His remarks comes against the backdrop of a court's recent order discharging the Maran brothers, Dayanidhi and Kalanithi in the Aircel-Maxis 2G spectrum case and arms dealer Abhishek Verma in a separate CBI cases, based on which the ED had registered criminal cases under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
Calling such developments as "bottle necks" in the agency effort to curb the menace of black money and corruption, Singh said that the "understanding of law sometimes creates problems".
"Our legs are tied with the scheduled agency (CBI in these cases). It is like in sports where we have the three-legged race...our one leg is tied with them (scheduled agencies like police or CBI) and many courts feel that the other case fails, then the ED case automatically fails.
"We have gone (in appeal) to the Supreme Court in such a case for a decision," the ED chief said.
He said that the rules of game are different in their investigation and the ED investigation.IANS For Latest Updates Please-
Join us on
Follow us on
172.31.16.186