Supreme Court asks ED to present ECIR in Chhattisgarh liquor irregularities case
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Enforcement Directorate to produce a copy of the ECIR (Enforcement Case Information Report) and FIR, on the basis of which the central probe agency has filed the complaint in the Chhattisgarh liquor irregularities case.
A bench of Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice Ujjwal Bhuyan passed the direction.
“We direct the Enforcement Directorate to produce before the court a copy of the ECIR referred to in prayer clause A and a copy of the FIR on the basis of which the Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) has been filed,” the court said. ED has been given two weeks to present the documents.
The court has listed the case for hearing on February 15. Earlier this October, the court had asked the Enforcement Directorate to temporarily stay its hands in a money laundering case related to the Chhattisgarh liquor irregularities case.
The top court gave this oral comment while hearing various petitions related to Chhattisgarh liquor irregularities case.
The top court directed the ED not to take coercive steps against the petitioners, including Anil and Yash Tuteja, in the money laundering case related to the Chhattisgarh liquor irregularities case and also remarked that the investigating agency should keep its hands off all means.
In the previous hearing, counsel for the petitioner had submitted that the allegations are about offenses under the Income Tax Act, so far as the offense indicated is concerned and cognizance has not been taken by the competent court.
A petition was filed by IAS Anil Tuteja and his son Yash Tuteja through advocate-on-record Malk Manish Bhatt.
Yash Tuteja has challenged the powers of section 50 and section 63 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (“PMLA”) and said that the challenge is primarily on the ground that the provisions of PMLA, which allow officers of the Directorate The Enforcement Directorate’s decision to summon any person to record his statement under Section 50 of the PMLA and to expect that person to speak truthfully in such statements is a violation of Articles 20(3) and 21 of the Constitution of India.
The petition has sought quashing of the summons issued by ED to Anil Tuteja under Section 50 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. Another petition was filed by Karishma and Anwar Dhebar through lawyer Malak Manish Bhatt.
Siddharth Singhania, one of the petitioners, has approached the court through advocate Aljo K Joseph. The ED is investigating the liquor scam, which ran from 2019 to 2022 and in which corruption was committed in many ways.
He said that bribe was taken on the basis of per box of liquor purchased by CSMCL from distillers.
ED investigation has revealed that Arun Pati Tripathi, through his direct actions at the insistence of Anwar Dhebar, corrupted the entire liquor system of Chhattisgarh to maximize corruption in the department.
He conspired with his other associates and made policy changes and gave tenders to Anwar Dhebar’s associates so that maximum benefits could be availed.
The ED has alleged that despite being a senior ITS officer and MD of CSMCL, he went against the working ethos of any state excise department and used state-run shops to sell unaccounted raw liquor.
The ED alleged that their collusion caused huge losses to the state exchequer and the pockets of the beneficiaries of the liquor syndicate were filled with more than Rs 2000 crore from the illicit proceeds of crime. He also got a major share of this loot.
Thus, CSMCL’s objective of enhancing state revenue and providing quality-controlled liquor to the citizens was violated by him for his personal illegal gain, the official statement said.
The ED has conducted consequential search operations at locations in Raipur, Bhilai and Mumbai, and the searches have resulted in the discovery of 53 acres of land in Naya Raipur, valued at Rs 21.60 crore, acquired by Anwar Dhebar using the proceeds of crime. Was. Name of a joint venture.
The property was purchased through a maze of transactions in the name of an associate using proceeds of crime earned from the FL-10A licensee.
According to the official statement, during the recent search proceedings, ED has seized cash worth Rs 20 lakh and several incriminating documents.
During searches in Mumbai, unaccounted investments of about Rs 1 crore were found in a stock trading firm in the name of Arvind Singh and Arvind Singh’s wife Pinky Singh and the same has been frozen under PMLA.
