2026 (1) TMI 1463

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....te Tribunal for Foreign Exchange Management Act/SAFEMA/NDPS/PMLA, New Delhi in FPA PMLA 1908/DLI/2017. 2. One of the contentions raised by the learned counsel for the appellant is that there was no order passed under Section 20(1) of the PMLA Act, and therefore, the entire proceedings were without jurisdiction. He submits that this legal position has been accepted by this Court vide its judgment in Anirudh Pratap Agarwal vs. Enforcement of Directorate [Neutral Citation No. 2025:DHC:8652-DB], observing as under:- "34. Section 20 is the crucial link between search and seizure under Section 17 and adjudication under Section 8 of the PMLA. Under Section 20(1), once property has been seized or frozen, an officer authorised by the Dir....

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.... safeguard against arbitrary executive action and ensures that property rights are protected until a full adjudication takes place under Section 8 of the PMLA. 37. The ED's contention that Section 17(4) alone suffices for retention of the property is untenable. Section 17(4) merely empowers the ED to approach the learned AA requesting for retention of the property, but the legal foundation for retention during the initial 180 days rests exclusively on Section 20 of the PMLA 38. Section 8 governs the process of adjudication by the learned AA. Sub-section (1) thereof empowers the learned AA to issue a notice to the concerned person, calling upon them to indicate the source of the property in question. Sub-section (2) require....

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....tory scheme of the PMLA thus embeds multiple layers of oversight as Section 17 authorises search and seizure; Section 20 provides for retention based on a reasoned and independent order for up to 180 days; and Section 8 sets the adjudicatory framework for confirmation and continuation. Any attempt to directly invoke Section 8(3) without compliance with Section 20 is impermissible. **** ***** ***** 44. In the present case, it is undisputed, and as admitted by the learned counsel for the ED during the arguments, that no order under Section 20 was ever passed by the ED in relation to the initial 180-day retention of the Appellant's property, nor was any such order communicated to the learned AA, as mandatorily required. Despi....