Delhi High Court refuses to stay summons issued to Mehbooba Mufti by ED in PMLA case

Team Udayavani, Mar 19, 2021, 1:59 PM IST

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Friday refused to stay the summons issued to former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case.

A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Jasmeet Singh said they are not granting any relief to the PDP leader.

The court asked the ED to file a short note of submission along with a compilation of judgments relied upon by them before the next date on April 16.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the ED, said Mufti just has to appear before the officials.

The ED, which had earlier summoned Mufti for March 15, has now been issued summons for March 22.

Senior advocate Nitya Ramakrishnan, representing Mufti, urged the court to ask ED not to insist for her personal presence as was done earlier.

To this, the bench said, “We are not giving any stay. We are not granting any relief.”

Mufti has sought quashing of summons issued to her by the ED in a money laundering case.

She has also sought to declare section 50 (power of ED officer to record statement) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act as void and inoperative, being unfairly discriminatory, bereft of safeguards, and violative of Article 20(3) of the Constitution.

She has also sought an interim stay on the summons until the question of law in relation to the constitutionality of Section 50 of the Act is decided.