Setback to AIADMK chief, HC allows ED plea against discharge

In a setback to AIADMK General Secretary V K Sasikala, the Madras High Court on Wednesday allowed a revision petition of Enforcement Directorate challenging her discharge and that of her nephew T T V Dinakaran by a Chennai court in two Foreign Exchange Regulation Act cases.

Justice G Chockalingam of the court's Madurai bench, who heard the revision petition filed challenging the discharge, set aside the lower court's order and remitted the case back to the trial court to hear the matter with regard to transactions in 1994.

The ED had filed six cases in the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (Economic Offences Court-I) which had discharged the duo in two cases in 2015 and directed them to face the trial in other cases.

The ED contended that a complaint was filed against Dinakaran for alleged "contravention" of FERA to the tune of USD 1,04,93,313 for "acquiring, transferring and making payment" to the credit of one M/s Dipper Investments Ltd, a company registered in British Virgin Island.

It said Dinakaran had allegedly acquired the money from persons other than authorised dealers in foreign exchange and deposited it in the bank account of Dipper Investments Ltd, a company incorporated outside India, without previous "general or special permission from the Reserve bank of India," thereby allegedly contravening the provisions of FERA.

The ED had argued that as regards Sasikala, the magistrate had failed to note that the amounts remitted into the NRNR account of one Susila, a friend of Sasikala, were foreign currencies received from abroad and which were non-repatriable.