Court Dismisses Writ Petition Challenging PMLA Orders

The court dismissed the writ petition challenging orders passed by the Adjudicating Authority under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. The Petitioner failed to approach the Appellate Tribunal as directed in a previous order, rendering the present petition not maintainable. The court emphasized that the merits of the petition were not considered and granted the Petitioner liberty to seek remedies within the legal framework. The jurisdictional issue regarding the Adjudicating Authority's orders under the PMLA was highlighted, and the court indicated that any appeal under Section 8(3) would be examined by the Appellate Tribunal if filed by the Petitioner.

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Issues:
Challenge to impugned orders under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act - Contrary action to law - Jurisdictional issue for orders passed by Adjudicating Authority - Maintainability of present writ petition.

Analysis:
1. The petition challenged impugned orders dated August 22, 2022, and September 22, 2022, passed by the Adjudicating Authority under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in Provisional Attachment Order No. 03/2022 dated April 6, 2022. The orders were issued under Section 8(3) of the PMLA regarding the same property previously retained and reattached, which the Petitioner claimed was against the law.

2. The Respondent argued that this was the second round of litigation by the same Petitioner, referring to a previous order granting liberty to approach the Appellate Tribunal under Section 25 of the PMLA. The court noted that the Petitioner had not approached the Appellate Tribunal but filed the present writ petition, raising a jurisdictional issue for the orders passed by the Adjudicating Authority.

3. The court observed that the order dated December 8, 2022, had already addressed the impugned orders now challenged in the writ petition. The Petitioner was given liberty in the previous order to approach the Appellate Tribunal, making the present writ petition not maintainable as per the court's opinion.

4. The court dismissed the present petition, emphasizing that the merits of the petition were not considered, and the Petitioner was granted liberty to avail remedies in accordance with the law. The court also mentioned that the issue of limitation for any appeal under Section 8(3) would be examined by the Appellate Tribunal if filed by the Petitioner.

5. In conclusion, the court found the present writ petition not maintainable due to the previous order addressing the same impugned orders. The dismissal of the petition was based on the Petitioner's failure to approach the Appellate Tribunal as granted in the earlier order, highlighting a jurisdictional issue regarding the Adjudicating Authority's orders under the PMLA.

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