NEW DELHI: Hours after the Supreme Court upheld Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) powers in money laundering cases, Congress on Wednesday said there are chances that the “political usage” of ED by the Centre will increase after this judgement.
In a statement, Congress media in-charge Jairam Ramesh said, “The judgment pronounced by the Supreme Court on the powers of the ED today will have far-reaching implications for our democracy, especially when governments are anchored in political vendetta.”
Ramesh, who is also a Rajya Sabha MP, said, “However, there is one specific aspect of the judgement I would like to address immediately. I had moved the Supreme Court on the blatant misuse of the Money Bill route by the Modi government, on the amendments made to the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. The Supreme Court issued notice on my petition on July 2, 2019.
“This question remains unresolved in today’s judgment,” he said.
The Congress general secretary also said that the court has agreed that they “are conscious of the fact that if that ground of challenge is to be accepted, it may go to the root of the matter and amendments effected vide Finance Act would become unconstitutional or ineffective.”
He said that the Supreme Court has left these matters to be decided by a larger bench. “This is a matter of some gratification,” Ramesh added.
Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court said the supply of a copy of the Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) in every case to the person concerned is “not mandatory” and it is enough if the ED discloses the grounds of arrest while arresting an accused.