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The Supreme Court has upheld the constitutional validity of certain provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). It added that it is not mandatory to give an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) in every case to the person concerned, reported PTI.
A Bench of Justices AM Khanwilkar, Dinesh Maheshwari and CT Ravikumar heard a batch of 241 petitions challenging the law and upheld the validity of Sections 3 (definition of money laundering), 5 (attachment of property), 8(4) [taking possession of attached property), 17 (search and seizure), 18 (search of persons), 19 (powers of arrest), 24 (reverse burden of proof), 44 (offences triable by special court), 45 (offences being cognizable and non-bailable), said the report.
The top court added that it is not compulsory to supply an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) to the accused and that it cannot be compared to a First Information Report (FIR).
“It is enough if Enforcement Directorate, at time of arrest, discloses grounds of such arrest,” the SC said on the PMLA provisions.
The top court asserted that the stringent conditions for bail under the Act is legal and not arbitrary.
Further, the SC rejected almost all objections raised against the probe agency regarding several powers including initiating an investigation, the power to arrest, and others.
The top court delivered its verdict on a batch of petitions concerning the interpretation of certain provisions of the PMLA.
