Actual possession of attached property under PMLA cannot be confined to symbolic possession once attachment is confirmed.

Under Section 8(4) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, once an attachment is confirmed under Section 8(3), the authorised officer is empowered to take actual physical possession of the attached property. The court noted that Section 71 gives the Act overriding effect over inconsistent laws, so possession cannot be confined to symbolic or constructive possession merely because rights under other enactments may be affected. The statutory scheme, including the amended provision and possession-taking rules, supports physical possession of attached immovable property, and the contrary direction to restore possession was unsustainable.

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Issues: Whether, under Section 8(4) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, the Director or authorised officer was entitled to take actual physical possession of attached property, and whether the term "possession" could be read down to mean only symbolic or constructive possession in view of rights under other enactments.

Analysis: The attachment, once confirmed under Section 8(3), permits the authorised officer to take possession of the attached property. The Act contains an overriding clause in Section 71, giving its provisions effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent contained in any other law. In that setting, the reasoning that actual possession would impair rights under other enactments could not prevail. The subsequent amendment to Section 8(4), together with the possession-taking rules, reinforced that the statutory scheme contemplates physical possession of immovable properties attached under the Act.

Conclusion: The term "possession" under Section 8(4) could not be restricted to symbolic or constructive possession, and the direction to restore actual possession to the writ petitioners was unsustainable. The issue is answered in favour of the appellants.

Ratio Decidendi: Where the statute expressly authorises taking possession of confirmed attached property and gives the enactment overriding effect over inconsistent laws, possession means actual possession and cannot be read down to a merely symbolic or constructive form.

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