ED cannot confine individuals during premises searches: Punjab and Haryana High Court

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has asserted that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) lacks the authority to confine individuals within their premises during search and seizure operations in money-laundering cases.

Justice Vikas Bahl made this observation while quashing the arrests of former Indian National Lok Dal MLA Dilbagh Singh and another accused, Kulwinder Singh. The arrests were related to allegations of illegal mining, with the two individuals challenging their arrest and subsequent remand to ED custody. The court ruled for their immediate release and emphasized that individuals undergoing search operations should not be confined within their premises.

According to the judgement pronounced on February 8 and made public recently, the court highlighted that those undergoing search and seizure operations should be allowed to continue their daily routines, including going to their workplaces.

While the ED has the right to ask individuals to open locks, safes, and cupboards during such operations, it does not have the authority to restrict their movements within the premises.

The court clarified that individuals cannot be forced to stay confined in their premises for the entire duration of the search.

The ED argued that individuals had to be present during the search and seizure operations as the items were in their possession. However, the court emphasized that ED rules on search and seizure operations do not provide the agency with the right to demand the presence of individuals during the operation.

The judgement also noted that the ED cannot detain individuals being searched for more than 24 hours without presenting them before a gazetted officer or a magistrate. The court emphasized that the ED did not invoke the relevant section for detention in the petitioner's case, and, therefore, the petitioners would be deemed to have been arrested from the beginning of the search operation.