Supreme Court agrees to hear plea on review of PMLA provisions

New Delhi, August 22

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A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking a review of its recent verdict upholding the validity of various provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) that gave wider powers of arrest and seizure to the Enforcement Directorate. The review petition was mentioned by an advocate on Monday before Chief Justice of India NV Ramana seeking urgent listing. “Is this on Justice Khanwilkar’s judgment,” the CJI asked. As the lawyer answered in the affirmative, the CJI said, “Okay, we will list it.”

The Supreme Court had on July 27 upheld the validity of several stringent provisions of the PMLA, which gave wider powers to the ED and made it difficult for the accused to obtain bail. A three-judge Bench led by Justice AM Khanwilkar (since retired) had said supply of Enforcement Case Information Report under PMLA proceedings was not mandatory as “it’s an internal document that can’t be equated with an FIR”. The verdict was widely criticised for ignoring concerns regarding civil liberties.