Enforcement Directorate recovered Rs 23,000 cr laundered money, distributed it to victims: Solicitor General to Supreme Court

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate has recovered around Rs 23,000 crore laundered money and distributed it to the victims of financial crimes, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the Supreme Court on Thursday.

The statement was made by the top law officer before a special bench comprising Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma during the open court hearing on a batch of pleas seeking review of the controversial May 2 judgement of the apex court.

The apex court had on May 2 ordered liquidation of Bhushan Power & Steel Limited (BPSL) while setting aside a resolution plan of JSW Steel Limited for the ailing firm.

The CJI-led bench on July 31 recalled the verdict and decided to hear afresh the review pleas in the high stake matter.

During the hearing on the review pleas, a lawyer referred to the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) probe in the BPSL case as well.

“Here also ED is there,” the CJI quipped.

In response, the solicitor general said, “Let me tell a fact, which was never said in any court, and that is …ED has recovered Rs 23,000 crore (laundered money) and given it to the victims".

The law officer said recovered money does not remain with the state exchequer and goes to the victims of financial crimes.

“What is the conviction rate,” the CJI asked.

Mehta said conviction rates in penal offences are also very low, and referred to the ills plaguing the criminal justice system in the country as the key reason for it.

To which, the CJI said, “Even if they are not convicted you have been successful in sentencing them almost without a trial for years together".

The law officer said, “In some of the cases where the politicians were raided, where the cash was found, our (cash counting) machines stopped functioning because of the huge cash…we had to bring new machines". He added that some narratives are being built on YouTube programmes when some big politicians are caught.

The CJI said, “We do not decide matters on narratives… I don't see news channels. I see headlines in newspapers only in the morning for 10-15 minutes".

The law officer said he knew the cases are not decided by the judges on the narratives being built on social media and outside courtrooms.

Several benches of the top court have been critical of alleged high handedness of the ED especially in cases involving opposition leaders in money laundering cases.

The CJI-led bench on July 21, in a different case, had observed that the Enforcement Directorate was "crossing all limits".

The suo motu matter pertained to summoning of two senior advocates by the ED for offering legal advice or representing clients during investigations.