ED Can't Be Vindictive, Grounds Of Arrest Must Be Furnished In Writing To Accused At The Time Of Arrest : Supreme Court

The Court went to the extent of stating that the ED's conduct "reeks of arbitrariness" and directed the immediate release of both the accused.

In a significant judgment pronounced on Tuesday (October 3), the Supreme Court held that the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) should furnish the grounds of arrest to the accused in writing at the time of arrest.

"We hold that it would be necessary, henceforth, that a copy of written grounds of arrest is furnished to the arrested person as a matter of course and without exception." pronounced a bench comprising Justices AS Bopanna and Sanjay Kumar while setting aside the arrest of Pankaj Bansal and Basant Bansal in the money laundering case against the real estate group M3M.

 The central agency approach was taken in the instant case by which the grounds of arrest were not furnished to the accused in written form. Noticing that the ED officer merely read out the grounds of arrest, the Court held that such conduct would not fulfil the mandate of Article 22(1) of the Constitution and Section 19(1) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.