The issue of whether the Enforcement Directorate (ED) can register a money laundering case even in the absence of a First Information Report (FIR) is all set to be brought before the court in the National Herald case. The Congress has contended that the agency is proceeding without an FIR for the scheduled offence under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
Now, the point of contention of the defence before the competent court would be whether the agency was empowered under the PMLA to register the ECIR without an FIR, said senior advocate Ramesh Gupta, who has represented the Congress leaders in the case.
The ED’s initial position over seven years ago was that an FIR was mandatory to register an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR). However, sources said, it was overturned by a subsequent circular that allowed the agency to also do so in matters where a magistrate had taken cognisance of a scheduled offence without an FIR, in line with what the complainant, BJP leader Subramanian Swamy, has argued.
