Bring ED under home ministry, BJP MP tells PM

NEW DELHI: BJP MP Nishikant Dubey on Sunday said the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which investigates crimes related to money laundering, should be shifted out of the jurisdiction of the finance ministry and brought under the home ministry.
The MP said shifting the ED to the home ministry made more sense as it was now headed by BJP chief Amit Shah, “who is decisive, proactive and unbiased”.
The ED functions under the department of revenue in the finance ministry. The post of the agency’s director is equivalent to the rank of an additional secretary and reports to the revenue secretary. It deals with the matters pertaining to Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).
In his letter to the PM, Dubey said most cases registered under FEMA were for offences which came under the Indian Penal Code or Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act or the Arms Act and others. Under the present system, the ED cannot independently register a case under the PMLA and has to mandatorily take cognizance of a case registered under other laws.