Facts for Prelims (FFP)
Source: IE
Context: The Supreme Court of India has ruled that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) must provide the grounds for arrest in writing to the accused at the time of arrest.
- The decision emphasizes that the ED should not engage in vindictive conduct and should act fairly and transparently.
- The ruling came in response to a plea by Pankaj Bansal and Basant Bansal, Directors of the M3M real estate group, who challenged their arrest by the ED under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The Punjab and Haryana High Court had refused to set aside their arrest.
- The court criticized the ED’s style of functioning and declared the arrest as illegal. It clarified that reading out the reasons for arrest to the accused does not fulfil the legal requirements.