New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday told the Enforcement Directorate (ED) that the agency should focus on the quality of prosecution and evidence, against the backdrop of low conviction rates in money laundering cases.
On Tuesday, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs informed the Lok Sabha that a total of 5,297 cases were lodged under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) by the ED between 2014 and 2024 while conviction was secured in 40 cases.
A three-judge bench led by Justice Surya Kant, citing the Centre’s statement in Parliament, said the central agency should do some scientific investigation to increase the conviction rate.
The bench, also comprising Justices Dipankar Datta, and Ujjal Bhuyan, made this observation while hearing a bail plea filed by a Chhattisgarh-based businessman, who was arrested in connection with a money laundering case involving illegal levy on coal transportation.
The bench told Additional Solicitor General S V Raju, representing the ED, that the central agency needs to concentrate on the quality of prosecution and evidence. "All the cases where you are satisfied that a prima facie case is made out, you need to establish those cases in the court," said the bench.
ED's counsel argued that unlike section 161 Code of Criminal Procedure, statements under section 50 of the PMLA are treated as evidence.
The bench told the counsel that in the present case, the agency is harping on the statements given by some witnesses, affidavits, while pointing at the kind of oral evidence.
"This type of oral evidence, tomorrow, God knows that person will stand by it or not. You should do some scientific investigation," observed the bench.
The bench said section 19 of PMLA requires the arresting officer to give "reasons to believe" to the accused and further queried, whether he thought the arresting order was sustainable in the present case?
Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing the petitioner, contended that in Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's case, the apex court has held that "reasons to believe", besides grounds of arrest, have to be supplied to the accused, and according to the judgement, there should be a necessity to arrest. The bench which had granted interim bail to Sunil Kumar Agrawal, made its earlier order absolute.
