TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2025 (8) TMI 895
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....e facts of the case, a large number of complaints were lodged against Shri Sridhar Dhanapal a notorious criminal for his involvement in 5 murders, 10 attempt to murders, kidnapping for ransom and also many other heinous offence cases and accordingly 26 FIRs were registered in different Police Station against him for commission of Schedule Offences. The details of the 26 FIRs registered against Sh. Sridhar Dhanapal & Ors. are mentioned in para no. 3 of the impugned order in the table at page no. 59 to 63, the same is not reproduced herein. Out of said FIRs, appellant D. Senthil is also named in the three FIRs, alongwith his brother. Accordingly, the Directorate of Enforcement recorded the ECIR No. CEZO/03/2016 dated 09.03.2016 for conducting investigation for the offences of money laundering and to trace out the trail of the proceeds of crime. During the investigation ED recorded the statements of suspects/ accused persons and others including the present appellants and also collected the documents from the Police and other sources including the Income Tax Authorities. As per report received from Income Tax Authorities Ms. Dhanalakshi Sirdhar daughter of accused Sh. Sridhar Dh....
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.... any scheduled offence or in any criminal activity hence the provision of Section 2(1)(y) are not applicable to the appellants, and they are merely the bonafide purchasers and the properties were purchased when no proceedings under the PMLA were initiated against the persons involved in the scheduled offence. He further pointed out that the impugned proceedings are illegal and unconstitutional being hit by violation of the principle of Coram non -judice. He stated that the provision of Section 6 (5)(a) & (b) of the PMLA require that the matter should be decided by a bench of Chairperson along with one or two members and since in the present case, the Chairperson alone has decided the matter, the same is hit by Section 6 of the PMLA. He also cited the case of Hasham Abbas Sayyed v. Usman Abbas Syyed v. Ors., AIR 2007 SC 1077, wherein it was held that if a person who made the order was not in authority to do so, then such an order would not only be nullity but in such a case even the principles of estoppel, waiver, acquiescence and even the principle of res judicata would apply. He also cited the judgment of Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Hassein Ghadially @ M.H.G.A. S....
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.... has been done by the Adjudicating Authority in the impugned order on pages 142-151, 156 & 157. It is evident from the materials available on record, that Shri Sridhar Dhanapal and his brother Shri D. Senthil and their Associates, who have committed offences vide various FIRs registered by various Police Stations at Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu have derived proceeds of crime by way of extortion, ransom, contract killing etc. and have laundered the same by buying and selling immovable properties in their names as well as in the name of their family members. The properties attached in the present case are the properties which were apparently acquired out of the proceeds of crime and are involved in money laundering, and thus, attached under Section 5(1) of PMLA. As regards, the reasons under section 8(1), it is seen that the language of the said provision is different insofar as section 8 does not specifically lay down that the reasons to believe are to be recorded in writing. The language used in section 8(1) of the Act is different from the one used in section 5(1). The AA is not required u/s 8(1) to record reasons and on the basis of the complaint filed by the initial authority u/s 5(5....
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.... decided against the appellants and in favor of the respondent ED. Issue No. (ii) 7. Coming to issue no ii), the contention of the appellants that the proceeds of crime do not exist as the properties were not acquired by them as a result of any criminal activity to the scheduled offences as appellant no.1 & 3 were not named as accused in any FIR for the commission of the predicate offences, and further, proceeds of crime in the present case are not quantified. The question of quantification in the present case does not emerge because appellants failed to show any legitimate source of income or earning for the acquisition of large number of assets. Further, the ED has given details of the acquisition of the impugned properties as cited on page 142-151 of the impugned order and which is even discussed by the Ld. AA in its discussion and findings on pages 151-153. Further, the appellant 1&3 have stressed that since they are not accused in any predicate offence, their properties should not be attached under the PMLA proceedings. However, the law on this issue now stands settled by the landmark judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Vijay Madanlal Choudhary and....
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....uired using the illegal money. Thus, the burden casted on her as per Section 24 of PMLA has not been discharged. As regards Ms. Dhanalakshmi Sridhar, she is the daughter of Shri Sridhar Dhanapal and, it is also on record that when Shri Sridhar was in Dubai, he has executed land deals through his daughter Ms. Dhanalakshmi, to the tune of Rs. 5 Crores. Further, she has stated in her statement dated 16.03.2016 that her father Shri Sridhar was doing liquor business and that she was aware of the immovable properties registered in her name and the properties were available in and around Kanchipuram. Also, she stated that she remembered three occasions, when she went to sub-Registrar office at Kanchipuram for signing documents, however, she does not know the number of properties registered in her name. Further, she was also not aware of the transactions, which were held in buying the properties in her name. She also stated that she did not know the sources of money paid for the purchases of the impugned immovable properties and by whom and how and that the same must be known to her parents. Moreover, she is still a student and has not filed any Income Tax Returns, and hence, does not h....
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.... held within the country or abroad can be proceeded with. The definition of "property" as in Section 2(1)(v) is equally wide enough to encompass the value of the property of proceeds of crime. Such interpretation would further the legislative intent in recovery of the proceeds of crime and vesting it in the Central Government for effective prevention of money-laundering." The para quoted above show a detailed discussion to the interpretation to the definition of "proceeds of crime". The judgment of the Apex Court in the case of Smt. Pavana Dibbur vs The Directorate of Enforcement reported in 2023 SCC OnLine SC 1586 has also been considered. However, findings given by three judges Bench of the Apex Court in the Vijay Madanlal Choudhary Vs. Union of India (supra) has been relied to give interpretation to the definition. In the light of the above, we find no force in the first argument when the proceeds out of crime was not available with the appellant rather vanished and siphoned off, the property of equivalent value has been attached. The proceeds were siphoned off by diverting it to various group companies and by layering the proceeds. In the light of the aforesaid, second limb ....