09 Nov 2024        13:49:14 pm

Political

Enforcement Directorate (ED)

Tags : Enforcement Directorate (ED)

Topic: Governance

Why in the news?

• Enforcement Directorate (ED) summons former India cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin in a money laundering case.
• The probe is related to alleged financial irregularities in the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) in which the ED had conducted searches

Source: The Hindu 

About Enforcement Directorate (ED):

• It is a multi-disciplinary organization mandated with investigation of offences of money laundering and violations of foreign exchange laws.
• It functions under the Department of Revenue of the Ministry of Finance.
• As a premier financial investigation agency of the Government of India, the Enforcement Directorate functions in strict compliance with the Constitution and Laws of India.
• It is headquartered at New Delhi.
  • There are five regional offices at Mumbai, Chennai, Chandigarh, Kolkata and Delhi headed by Special Directors of Enforcement.
  • It has 10 Zonal offices each of which is headed by a Deputy Director and 11 sub Zonal Offices each of which is headed by an Assistant Director.
• Recruitment of the officers is done directly and by drawing officers from other investigation agencies.
  • It comprises officers of IRS (Indian Revenue Services), IPS (Indian Police Services) and IAS (Indian Administrative Services) such as Income Tax officer, Excise officer, Customs officer, and police.
• In November 2021, the President of India promulgated two ordinances allowing the Centre to extend the tenures of the directors of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate from two years to up to five years.
• The statutory functions of the Directorate include enforcement of following Acts:
  • COFEPOSA: Under the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974 (COFEPOSA), this Directorate is empowered to sponsor cases of preventive detention with regard to contraventions of FEMA.
  • Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA): It is a civil law enacted to consolidate and amend the laws relating to facilitate external trade and payments and to promote the orderly development and maintenance of foreign exchange market in India.
    • ED has been given the responsibility to conduct investigation into suspected contraventions of foreign exchange laws and regulations, to adjudicate and impose penalties on those adjudged to have contravened the law.
  • Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA): Following the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) India enacted PMLA.
    • The ED has been entrusted with the responsibility of executing the provisions of PMLA by conducting investigation to trace the assets derived from proceeds of crime, to provisionally attach the property and to ensure prosecution of the offenders and confiscation of the property by the Special court.
  • Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018 (FEOA): Lately, with the increase in the number of cases relating to economic offenders taking shelter in foreign countries, the Government of India introduced the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018 (FEOA) and ED is entrusted with its enforcement.
    • This law was enacted to deter economic offenders from evading the process of Indian law by remaining outside the jurisdiction of Indian courts.
    • Under this law, the ED is mandated to attach the properties of the fugitive economic offenders who have escaped from India warranting arrest and provide for the confiscation of their properties to the Central Government.

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