Challenges To PMLA: CJI To Speak With Justice Surya Kant On Listing Of Review, Other Pleas

Chief Justice of India B R Gavai on Monday said he would speak to Justice Surya Kant on the issue of listing fresh petitions along with the pleas seeking review of a 2022 verdict upholding the key provisions of the PMLA including ED's powers to arrest, conduct searches and attach property.

In 2022, the top court in Vijay Madanlal Choudhary case upheld the key provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

The judgment has since faced several legal challenges, including review pleas and the fresh writ petitions, challenging the verdict and seeking the reference of the matter to a larger bench.

On July 31, a bench headed by Justices Surya Kant, Ujjal Bhuyan and N Kotiswar Singh said it would first hear arguments on the issue of maintainability of petitions seeking a review of its 2022 verdict.

It, however, did not agree to hear the main pleas with review petitions and asked senior advocate Kapil Sibal to approach the CJI for directions.

Accordingly, Sibal mentioned the issue before the CJI-led bench on Monday urging that both types of matters be heard together.

Sibal was referring to the matter titled as ED v. M/s Obulapuram Mining Company Private and said in this matter, a three-judge bench was constituted to decide whether the Vijay Madanlal Choudhary judgment should be referred to a larger bench.

He said the bench comprising former judges Justices S K Kaul, Sanjiv Khanna and Bela M Trivedi had heard the matter on several occasions.

Sibal further said in November 2023 the bench was dissolved in view of the retirement of Justice Kaul and the matter was not listed after that.

A Justice Surya Kant-led bench agreed to hear review petitions on Aug. 6 to deliberate upon preliminary objections.

"The review petitions in the PMLA matter are listed for hearing on Aug. 6 and 7. There was another 3-judge bench qua the PMLA matter where hearing could not be completed since Justice Kaul retired. I mentioned it to the other bench. They said mention it before your lordships for both the matters to be heard together." Sibal informed the CJI.

"If your review is decided, this will also be covered." the CJI said.

"Those matters were for the purposes of finding out which of the matters should be referred to the larger bench." Sibal said.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, on the other hand, objected to the submissions, saying by way of mentioning, petitioners were trying to overcome the recent order of Justice Kant's bench which said ED's preliminary objections to the maintainability of review would be first heard.

"In review, notice was issued on a limited ground. To come out of that, they started filing other petitions raising all grounds." Mehta said.

"Why should both the matters be heard differently?" Sibal asked.

"Suppose if review itself is found to be maintainable then..." the CJI asked.

"I can still argue the reference. Because review is a limited jurisdiction. I can still argue some of the issues should be referred to a larger bench." Sibal said.

"I will speak to the learned judge." the CJI offered.

On July 31, the Justice Surya Kant-led bench said the ED proposed three preliminary issues, primarily dealing with the question of the maintainability of the review petitions.

The bench said the review petitioners proposed 13 questions for its consideration.

"Since the proposed issues are arising in the review proceedings, we propose to firstly hear the parties on the issue of maintainability of the review petitions, followed by the hearing on the questions proposed to be raised on behalf of the review petitioners." the bench said.

It said eventually, the questions that might finally arise for consideration would also be determined by the court, if it holds that the review pleas are maintainable.

The bench posted the matter for hearing on Aug. 6.

On May 7, the top court asked the parties to frame the issues to be adjudicated in the matter.

The Centre contended that the hearing of the review petitions cannot go beyond the two specific issues flagged by the apex court bench that issued notices on the petitions in August 2022.

Mehta said the bench which considered the review petitions for admission in August 2022, issued notices only on two aspects -- the supply of the ECIR copy to the accused and the reversal of the burden of proof under section 24 of the PMLA.