New Delhi: Data presented in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday indicated that the number of cases registered under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act increased dramatically after the Union government made changes to the law in 2019 to make it more stringent.
The Minister of State for Home Affairs, Nityanand Rai, stated in a written response that 188 cases were registered in 2019 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
In 2020, there were 708 cases registered under the Act; this number rose to 1,166 in 2021, 1,074 in 2022, and 934 in 2023. According to the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, officials have filed 397 cases so far in 2024.
In comparison, 170 cases were registered under the Act in 2016, 148 cases in 2015, and 195 cases under the Act in 2014. In 2017, the figure was 171, while in 2018, it was 146.
The Centre changed the law in 2019 to make it illegal to even possess money obtained through illegal activities, which resulted in a substantial increase in cases under the Act, scroll.in reported.
It also made the offence of money laundering “a continuing offence, irrespective of [the] time at which the predicate offence is included in the schedule”.
This amendment gave the government the ability to prosecute cases involving crimes that were committed prior to the Act's passage on the grounds that the accused individual is still in possession of the money that was obtained illegally.
The figures were presented in response to a question from Hyderabad MP and head of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen Asaduddin Owaisi on Tuesday.
Owaisi had requested information from the government concerning the number of cases filed, as well as the individuals convicted or acquitted under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, between 2014 and 2024.
In addition, he requested the total number of accused individuals currently detained under both laws from the Union Home Ministry.
According to Rai's statement, 5,297 cases were registered under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act between 2014 and 2024. Just 40 of these have led to convictions in the last ten years.
According to Rai, 140 accused individuals are presently being held under the Act's provisions. The Centre reported that 8,719 cases were registered under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act between 2014 and 2022. Out of the total cases, only 222 resulted in convictions.