Two legal hurdles holding up final attachment of assets: ED

LEGALITY OF THE ATTACHMENTS HAS BEEN CHALLENGED BY THE ACCUSED IN 200 PETITIONS AND IS PENDING: ED

- Neeraj Chauhan

NEW DELHI: Nearly one-third of ₹1.54 lakh crore worth proceeds of crime (PoC) attached by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) till date under the prevention of money laundering act (PMLA) are subject to legal challenges.

According to the financial crimes probe agency's annual report, the legality of the attachments has been challenged by the accused in over 200 petitions and is currently pending before various high courts and the Supreme Court.

Under PMLA, a property is first provisionally attached by ED through an attachment order. It remains provisionally attached for 180 days. Meanwhile, this attachment order is forwarded to an adjudicating authority (AA) which reviews whether the property is involved in money laundering and confirms the attachment order.