Bengaluru : The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) cannot initiate proceedings by filing a private complaint under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the high court has ruled.
The court further observed that allowing the ED to proceed in such circumstances would effectively amount to presuming that the Lokayukta police or the concerned investigating agency had failed in its duty by not initiating criminal proceedings against the accused despite receiving information from the ED. This would place the ED on a higher pedestal, a position not envisaged by law. The scheme of the PMLA, the judge noted, contemplates that prosecution for the predicate offence must be initiated by the respective prosecuting agency or a third party, and not by the ED or authorities constituted under the PMLA.
“If the ED is permitted to file a private complaint, it would be in a position to file such complaints against any person on its own and initiate an investigation against them. This is not contemplated under the provisions of the PMLA,” the judge observed. The court made these observations while quashing proceedings initiated against K.Y Nanje Gowda, MLA from Malur and chairperson of the Land Grant Committee in Malur, Kolar district, and others. Consequently, the court quashed the proceedings arising out of the private complaint against Nanje Gowda, KN Gopal Murthy and C Raju Krishna. It quashed the Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) against YB Ashwathnarayan and C Raju Krishna. It also directed the ED to return the articles seized from Ashwathnarayan.