ED's investigation against defaulters at halt

The Enforcement Directorate’s (ED’s) research of alleged National Spot Exchange Ltd (NSEL)  crisis has reportedly come to a twist because some suspects are no longer returning to the agency’s summons.

It is known that the agency’s summons are no longer backed by the threat of arrest after two judgments delivered by the Punjab and Haryana High Court on 22nd and 25th of July as per information from ED officials. In these rulings, the High Court has stated that if a person is not in detention or summoned during investigations that take place instantaneously after a case is filed, he or she cannot be arrested after a charge sheet has been filed in court.

In the bargain of these rulings, the accused in the NSEL crisis are now no longer cooperating with the investigations. Summons to defaulters and other accused to appear for questioning are not being honored as the ED may not be able to arrest them on charges of not cooperating with investigations, following the High Court orders. The agency is said to be planning to appeal against the court’s ruling in the Supreme Court and are currently taking legal counsel on the tenability of approaching the apex court, considering these are interim orders.