IMPORTANT POINT
Under Prevention of Money-Laundering Act, 2002, money-laundering is an independent offence and in the event there is any allegation of Enforcement Directorate having acted beyond jurisdiction or their act of arrest is not authorized by law, petitioner would be entitled to apply before appropriate Court of law independently – But that question could not be examined in a Special Leave Petition arising from proceedings in which question of Money Laundering were not involved.

ORDER :

1. These two applications have been taken out by the petitioner in connection with Special Leave Petition (Civil) Nos. 16325-16326 of 2022. In these Special Leave Petitions, the petitioner has questioned legality of an order of a Division Bench of the High Court at Calcutta sustaining a series of orders passed by a Single Judge on 13th, 15th, 17th, 20th and 21st June 2022 in two Writ petitions, registered as 9979 of 2022 and 7097 of 2019. The controversy relates to allegations of illegalities in recruitment of primary school teachers through the Teachers Eligibility Test, 2014. In these orders several directions were given against the petitioner herein, including directing the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to start interrogation of the petitioner and in the event the petitioner (and certain other persons) did not cooperate with the CBI was given the liberty to interrogate them after taking them into custody. This set of orders passed between 13th June 2022 and 21st June 2022 were carried in appeal by the petitioner as well as other authorities before a Division Bench of the High Court. The Division Bench, in substance, sustained these orders.

2. When the Petitions for Special Leave to Appeal was heard by this Court on 27th September 2022, notice was issued and in the SLPs in connection with which these IAs have been taken out, it was directed that no coercive steps shall be taken against the petitioner till 28th September 2022. This protection has subsequently been continued.

3. Learned Counsel for the petitioner had mentioned before us on 12th October 2022 that the petitioner was arrested on 10th October 2022 by the Enforcement Directorate. These two IAs were filed on 12th October 2022 itself, being I.A. No. 154274 of 2022 for impleading the Directorate of Enforcement as a partyrespondent to the present Special Leave Petitions and I.A. No. 154275 of 2022 for declaring the arrest of the petitioner as illegal. Such arrest was made by the Enforcement Directorate on the basis of Enforcement Case Information Report under No. KLZO-II/19/2022 (ECIR).

4. We heard the above two applications on 18th October 2022. Mr. Mukul Rohtagi, learned Senior Counsel for the petitioner argued that when the latter was under the protective cover of the order passed by this Court, his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate was illegal, being in violation of that Order of this Court. His submission has been that the protection granted by this Court was in relation to a particular offence and the Enforcement Directorate had arrested him in relation to the same offence, which was unwarranted.

5. Mr. Tushar Mehta, learned Solicitor General appeared in these matters on behalf of the Enforcement Directorate and his submission is that in the Writ Petitions, out of which the present proceedings arise, Enforcement Directorate was not a party. The Order of this Court, giving interim protection to the petitioner from coercive steps, was based in the backdrop of the direction of the Single Judge issued on CBI to investigate into the allegations of irregularities pertaining to the recruitment of primary teachers and observations of the Single Judge that CBI could interrogate the petitioner and also arrest him in case of his non-cooperation. His case is that the Enforcement Directorate had initiated an independent investigation into money-laundering allegations based on the aforesaid ECIR against one Chandan Mondal @ Ranjan and unknown office bearers of the West Bengal Board of Primary Education and others.

6. In an affidavit filed on behalf of the Enforcement Directorate affirmed by one Devranjan Mishra on 17th October 2022, a copy of the remand application of the Enforcement Directorate has been annexed. We find in this application, there is broad reference to the allegations which are being investigated by the CBI. Enforcement Directorate’s case, however, is that various incriminating documents were seized during the course of the search conducted at th