The Centre has defended its decision to extend the tenure of the director of the Enforcement Directorate and said that petition challenging it is motivated and urged the top court to dismiss the plea.
The Central government submission came on an affidavit filed countering the submission of the petition challenging the extension of the ED director. The government told the Supreme Court that the petition challenging the extension of ED tenure is without merit, and urged the top court to dismiss it
Centre informed the apex court that the petition is clearly motivated by an oblique personal interest rather than any public interest litigations
The Centre also said that the petition is a misuse of Article 32 of the Constitution, which is clearly being filed in a representative capacity for and on behalf of the President and the office bearers of the Indian National Congress, who are being investigated by ED and are otherwise fully competent to approach respective courts for appropriate statutory relief and remedy under the Code of Criminal Procedure.
Centre said the petition has been filed for espousing the cause of her political masters when there is nothing barring the concerned persons who are under investigation from approaching the competent court for any appropriate relief.
Centre submitted that the present Writ Petition, styled as a Public Interest Litigation, is clearly motivated and is admittedly intended to scuttle the legitimate statutory investigation being carried out by the Directorate of Enforcement against certain politically exposed persons.
Centre said that the real motive of the petition is to question the investigation being carried out against the President and certain office bearers of the Indian National Congress Party.
Centre submitted that It is a well-known fact that the menace of corruption, black money and international financial crime and its intricate links with drugs, terrorism and other criminal offences pose a serious threat to national security and the stability of the financial systems of our country. Further, corruption in public life often has the consequence of the economic and social rights of common people being violated.
“The spectre of corruption at times totally erodes the confidence of people in the systems that are meant to provide them good governance. Effectively tackling corruption is therefore essential for the realization of economic and social rights of people and for maintaining their faith in institutions and governance,” Centre said.
“It is respectfully submitted that certain leaders of the aforesaid political parties are under investigation of the Directorate. The investigation is strictly going on in accordance with the law which is reflected from the fact that in most of the cases, either the competent Courts have taken cognizance of the offence or Constitutional Courts have refused to grant any relief to such leaders of the above political parties,” the affidavit read.
“It is apparent that the subject petitions are filed for and on behalf of such leaders of political parties of the petitioners and to ensure that the Enforcement Directorate does not and cannot discharge its statutory duties fearlessly. There is a manifest political interest in filing the above writ petitions, which is apparent. It clearly appears that to achieve such political advantage the petitions are camouflaged as Public Interest Litigation without even bothering to mention details about the important leaders of the parties to which each of the petitioners belongs are being investigated. As a matter of fact, the petitioner in the present case makes the said thing apparent though she has also failed to discose serious cases of money laundering under investigation against several other leaders of the party to which she belongs,” the affidavit read.
Centre said these facts in reply to a petition filed by the General Secretary of the Madhya Pradesh Mahila Congress Committee Jaya Thakur through advocate Varun Thakur and advocate Shashank Ratnoo.
The petitioner Jaya Thakur has said the extension has been granted despite the matter being subjudice and initial adverse order against the respondent ED Director SK Mishra in another petition filed by activist Dr Jaya Thakur in the Supreme Court of India. The petitioner has challenged the Centre decision dated November 17 2022 whereby the government has extended the third tenure of the director of Enforcement Directorate SK Mishra.
The petitioner said that democracy is a part of the basic structure of our Constitution and rule of law and free and fair elections are basic features of democracy. “The respondents destroyed the basic structure of democracy by misusing the enforcement agencies against the political opponent. The Supreme Court in a number of the cases held that appointment in Enforcement Agencies must be fair and transparent manners if their appointment will be done in biased nature, then they can be used as tools,” the petition said.
