Illegal sand mining: Don’t harass Tamil Nadu district collectors unnecessarily, Supreme Court tells ED

The ED’s counsel said they had appeared before the ED, but they have not submitted any details or documents to the central anti-money laundering agency so far.

Sibal countered the ED’s claim asserting that they have furnished the required documents asked for through the summons.

“My instructions are that no details or documents have been submitted in furtherance of their (the officials’) undertaking,” the ED’s counsel said, adding, “we can file an affidavit to this effect”.

The bench told the ED’s counsel to specify the documents which the district collectors have not yet supplied.

“They (district collectors) came at 11 O’clock. They made them sit there till 8:30 in the evening,” Sibal said. “You can’t do this,” the bench told the ED’s counsel.

When the lawyer said he will have to find out about this, the bench observed “Don’t harass them unnecessarily.”

Also Read: Delhi’s AAP government ‘indulged in corruption’, polluted Yamuna, says Annamalai

‘Cavalier approach of district collectors’

The apex court asked the ED to file a report stating exactly which documents these officers have not produced in response to the summons.

It posted the matter for further hearing in July.

During the hearing on 2 April, the bench had observed the officials adopted a “cavalier approach” and their actions show they have no respect for the court, law and the Constitution.

“In our opinion, such cavalier approach and disdainful attitude of the District Collectors may land them into a difficult situation. When the Court had passed the order directing them to appear in response to the summons issued by the ED, they were expected to obey the said order and remain present before the ED,” the bench had said.

“By not following the order, they have created an impression that they do not have respect either for the Court, or for the law, much less for the Constitution of India. Such an approach is strongly deprecated,” it had said.

On 27 February, the top court had directed the five district collectors to appear before the ED in connection with the probe.

The Madras High Court had on 28 November last year stayed the summons issued by the ED seeking the presence of district collectors of Vellore, Tiruchirappalli, Karur, Thanjavur and Ariyalur in connection with the probe.

The ED had moved the top court against the high court order, saying it would hamper its probe.

The Supreme Court had stayed the high court order granting relief to the district collectors. The top court said the plea of Tamil Nadu and its officials was “strange and unusual” and may lead to stalling the ED investigation.

(Disclaimer: The headline, subheads, and intro of this report along with the photos may have been reworked by South First. The rest of the content is from a syndicated feed, and has been edited for style.)