SC upholds ED's summons against TMC leader Abhishek, wife in coal case

In a setback to TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee and his wife Rujira Banerjee, the Supreme Court on Monday dismissed their pleas challenging the summons and proceedings initiated against them by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case related to alleged illegal excavation and theft of coal in areas of Eastern Coalfields Limited (ECL). A bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and Satish Chandra Sharma upheld the validity of the summons issued by the ED dated September 10, 2021, to the couple under Section 50 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) asking them to appear in New Delhi office in connection with the case. "In that view of the matter, we do not find any substance in the challenge made by the appellants to the summons issued to the appellants under Section 50 of the PMLA," the bench ordered. It said that as contemplated in the sub-section (3) of Section 50, all the persons summoned are bound to attend in person or through authorised agents as the officer may .