ED Assures Won’t Insist On Senior Advocate Anand Grover’s Appearance In NGO-PMLA Case: Enforcement Directorate To Bombay High Court.
(Judicial Quest News Network)
The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday have told the Bombay High Court that until December 14, the next hearing They (ED) will not insist upon the physical appearance of Senior Advocate Anand Grover in response to the summons issued to him in his capacity as a trustee of the NGO, Lawyers Collective, which is allegedly embroiled in a money laundering case.
The situation in Delhi where Grover had to appear is very serious the court said on Wednesday while hearing two petitions filed by the NGO and Grover seeking to quash the 2019 complaint filed by the ED under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act(PMLA) over the charges of violation of provisions of the Foreign Contributions Regulation Act (FCRA), Additional Solicitor Anil Singh, appearing for the ED, told the cout that the agency would not insist on the summons till December 14, by when it would also file its affidavit to the petitions.
The Bench of Justices SS Shinde and MS Karnik recorded this in the plea filed Lawyers Collective challenging the summons issued for appearance on November 26.
IN View of the COVID-19 situation in Delhi and Maharashtra, the Court had asked the Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh to seek instructions from the ED on whether the hearing on the summons can be differed?
Senior Advocate Amit Desai, Aspi Chinoy vehemently opposed the ASG’S request to not record this statement on apprehension that the ED may proceed to take coercive action against Grover and create a default against his name for non-appearance.
Grover in his petition also challenged the summons issued against him filed by the ED earlier this month.
The Enforcement Directorate had also asked Grover to produce Lawyers Collective Records of Foreign contribution.
The Petition filed through Rahul Kamerkar.
As per the plea, in November, 2016, the Union Ministry of Home affairs had cancelled the group’s FCRA registration claiming irregularities. In June 2019, the CBI had registered an FIR against the group for alleged violation of FCRA provisions and on corruption charges. Thereafter, the ED had registered a complaint s against the Lawyers Collective and Grover under the PMLA provisions.
The order had been challenged before the Bombay High Court.
ASG reiterated that he was making a responxible submission to the Court only because the Court had asked him to seek instructions from the ED.
“ I am apapearing before milords, I am making a statement.I am statingresponsibly as ASG. Milords and my learned friends shouldtrust me” ASG Anil Said.
The Court also expressed allied concerns over stating that
…if Grover does not appear tomorrow, then at a later date if there is some isuue, then how will they show their absence was allowed”.
The hearing on merit of the plea will continue on December 14,2020.
[Read Order]
