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The Madras High Court imposed a fine of Rs 30,000 against the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for repeatedly failing to file counter affidavits in connection with the alleged Rs 1,000 crore Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) money laundering investigation.
Three writ petitions filed by Tamil film producer Akash Bhaskaran and businessman Vikram Ravindran after their properties were seized as part of the probe.
The Bench of Justices MS Ramesh and V Lakshminarayanan levied Rs 10,000 per petition as a fine and granted the ED a final two-week extension to file its response.
According to a Live Law report, the court noted it had already given the ED a last opportunity in the previous hearing and refused to allow further delay without penalty. “We can permit time, but only after imposing fine,” the bench remarked.
The petitioners challenged the ED’s May 15 search and seizure operations, which resulted in the sealing of their residence and office. According to The Hindu, the court had earlier stayed all ED proceedings on June 20 after finding that the authorisation issued by the Joint Director of ED was “wholly without authority or jurisdiction.”
Upon examining the documents submitted in a sealed cover, the court had found that the ED lacked any incriminating material to justify its actions. “It would be sufficient to state that the so-called information produced by the Directorate before us had absolutely no semblance of information which may have led them to believe that the petitioners may be involved in the offence of money laundering,” the court had observed.
Despite this interim stay and a clear direction to return seized items including digital devices and documents, the ED issued further notices to Bhaskaran. This prompted the High Court to censure the agency on July 23 and allow the petitioners to file a contempt petition, which they did subsequently.
On Wednesday, when the contempt plea came up for hearing, the ED sought more time to file its counter affidavit. The court, expressing displeasure, imposed the penalty and directed the amount to be deposited into the Chief Justice’s relief fund. The hearing has now been adjourned to August 20.
The petitioners have consistently denied any connection to the TASMAC scam, stating that the only alleged link was the presence of Bhaskaran’s phone number in the mobile device of TASMAC’s Managing Director. Their counsel argued that there was no evidence of communication, via calls or WhatsApp, with anyone involved in the case.