Amid criticism over misuse of government agencies for political purposes, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said the Enforcement Directorate (ED) is “completely independent in what it does”, outlined the process the ED follows on cases, and said there have been some standout cases where the agency has seized wealth and had to act.
“The ED is completely independent in what it does. It is an agency that follows on predicate offences. The first offence is already picked up by any other agency, be it the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) or any other agency. And it is post that the ED comes into the picture. ED doesn’t appear anywhere in the first instance,” she said.
At a press conference in Washington DC on Saturday evening, HT had asked the finance minister whether she wanted to clarify the role of the two agencies under her ministry, Income Tax and ED, in the backdrop of a widely-held perception that they were being used to go after segments of private capital and civil society institutions.
Sitharaman said she did not want to comment on individual cases or the approach.
“But certainly, there are instances which stand out and if the ED goes there, it is with some prima facie evidence in its hand,” she said. She said some of this had been covered by the media itself, “the quantum of money seized or precious jewelry or gold seized”. “So they have to act.”
{{/usCountry}}“But certainly, there are instances which stand out and if the ED goes there, it is with some prima facie evidence in its hand,” she said. She said some of this had been covered by the media itself, “the quantum of money seized or precious jewelry or gold seized”. “So they have to act.”
{{/usCountry}}Later in the press conference, Sitharaman also referred to the ED’s role in tracing money laundering on crypto assets.