In the News:

The Supreme Court witnessed a clash between the Tamil Nadu government and the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) concerning the jurisdiction of the ED to probe “illegal” sand mining activities in the state.
TN contested the ED’s authority to investigate sand mining under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), asserting that sand mining offenses were not scheduled under the PMLA.

Why did the ED step in?

Whenever any offence is registered by a local police station, which has generated proceeds of crime over and above ₹1 crore, the investigating police officer forwards the details to the ED.
Alternately, if the offence comes under the knowledge of the Central agency, they can then call for the First Information Report (FIR) or the chargesheet if it has been filed directly by police officials.
This will be done to find out if any laundering has taken place.

	Details
Establishment	May 1, 1956 Initially set up as an ‘Enforcement Unit’
Nodal Agency	Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance
Jurisdiction	Nationwide

Functional Focus	Economic and financial offenses including money laundering, foreign exchange irregularities
Investigative Powers	Attachment, confiscation, and arrest Conduct raids and searches Summon and question individuals
Collaboration	Coordinates with various agencies (CBI, local police) and banks
Reporting Authority	Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance
Corruption Investigations	Has a separate Economic Offenses Division
Notable Cases	Vijay Mallya extradition PNB fraud case Augusta Westland VVIP chopper scam
International Cooperation	Works with international law enforcement for cross-border investigations (Interpol, FATF)
Public Interface	Accepts complaints and information regarding economic offenses
Transparency and Accountability	Regular reports to the Ministry of Finance; subject to oversight by judiciary and government bodies

	Description
Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act (COFEPOSA), 1974	To sponsor cases of preventive detention related to contraventions of FEMA.
Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999	ED to investigate suspected contraventions of foreign exchange laws and regulations, adjudicate and impose penalties, and Trace assets derived from proceeds of crime.
Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002	ED to investigate, trace assets derived from proceeds of crime, provisionally attach property, and Ensure prosecution and confiscation by Special Court (PMLA Court under Section 4 of PMLA).
Fugitive Economic Offenders Act (FEOA), 2018	ED to enforce provisions related to attachment and confiscation of properties belonging to FEOs who have fled India to evade the legal process.

[Burning Issue] Enforcement Directorate (ED): Dreaded nightmare of Indian Politicians & Businessmen