New ED circular asks officers not to interrogate people at ‘unearthly hours’ | Latest news India

NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued internal guidelines directing officers not to interrogate people at “unearthly” hours and not keep them waiting at their offices for hours, the agency said on Tuesday.

For seniors or those who are ill or infirm, the internal circular asks officials to “strictly” limit taking statements during earthly or business hours.

The circular was issued on October 11, months after the Bombay High Court in April directed the federal agency to issue the guidelines as it was hearing a petition from a person who was summoned, detained overnight and interrogated.

A 64-year-old businessman had complained to the Supreme Court that his statement was recorded overnight, depriving him of his ‘right to sleep’ under Article 21 (right to live with dignity) of the Constitution.

A bench of Justices Prithviraj K Chavan and Revati Mohite Dere upheld the arrest but directed ED to implement timings for recording statements under Section 50 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. It has also asked the ED to post this circular on its website and X-handle.

The issue also came up before the Supreme Court on September 21, when the Supreme Court lashed out at the agency for the “inexcusable” act of calling individuals at short notice, keeping them awake all night and arresting them the next day . “There is something known as Article 21 of the Constitution of India (right to life and liberty) of the citizens. This is inexcusable and you simply cannot allow yourself to interrogate someone all night and then take them into custody the next day. This is simply not done,” Abhay S Oka and Augustine George Masih of the Supreme Court said in a petition filed by a retired IAS officer in Chhattisgarh.

The circular issued by ED stated that the officer in charge or IO (Investigation Officer) of ED should be well prepared with copies of documents to be confronted with as well as a questionnaire to examine the summoned person on the agreed date and time.

“The IO while fixing the date and time of serving the summons should ensure that the person so summoned is taken for interrogation at the appointed time and date without keeping him waiting for hours,” the report said.

The circular added that given the nature of the money laundering crime, where a person can transfer or conceal the proceeds of crime in a short period of time or destroy digital evidence using online tools or by using a mobile phone or other digital media, the IO “will make every effort to complete the interrogation of the person summoned expeditiously, preferably on the same day or the next day”.

“This approach can minimize the opportunity for the person summoned to transfer or conceal the proceeds of crime, or to fabricate sham and fabricated explanations,” the report said.

The circular added that “efforts should be made to record the statement of a person summoned during earthly hours, i.e. during business hours, rather than stretching it too late into the night.”

“In the case of seniors, persons with a serious medical condition, ill or disabled (subject to verification of medical records or condition), should be limited to earth hours and that it would be appropriate to postpone the examination to the next date or such other mutually agreed date as a matter of practice,” the circular said.

However, in exceptional circumstances, the circular said, when the international organization has credible information or material, if the person is allowed to leave without completion of the investigation, he or she will either dispose of the proceeds of crime or evidence or conduct destroying the person’s past.

is called up or absconds or does not participate in the investigation, the IO may record the statement “outside earth hours” after this reason has been included in the file and approval has been obtained from a senior officer.