Full form of ED: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is an investigative wing of the Ministry of Finance, India’s anti-money laundering agency. It was formed in July 2017 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act 2005 to combat financial crimes.
The ED works with the Ministry of Home Affairs to investigate and prosecute violations pertaining to money laundering, corruption, tax evasion, drug trafficking and other financial crimes. It also works with other agencies such as the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) to fight financial crimes.
The main function of the ED is to prevent and investigate money laundering activities by tracking suspicious transactions and applying the necessary regulatory measures such as seizing or freezing assets and conducting forensic investigations. The agency also enforces criminal laws against those who commit these crimes. The ED investigates all serious crimes primarily related to money laundering, economic offences and insider trading. It also has jurisdiction over other types of offences that lead to loss or damage to the public exchequer such as corruption, violation of foreign exchange rules, terrorist financing and other crimes against the state. The investigative powers of the ED are broad and include gathering evidence in a variety of ways such as investigating potential offenders’ accounts, interviewing witnesses, and examining digital devices for evidence. The ED also collects evidence from third-party sources such as banks and financial institutions. The agency is also able to confiscate property linked to an offence, freeze bank accounts and order companies to cease operations in certain cases.
As a member of the Inter-Agency Committee on Money Laundering (IACML), the ED works closely with other government agencies including CBDT, NIA and FIU to tackle financial crime in India.
The department’s main function is to recover funds that have been illegally obtained by individuals or organisations. These can include assets acquired through corruption, theft or mismanagement. Another type of case involves cases in which funds have been diverted from a company’s legitimate business activity into illegal activities like tax evasion or money laundering. ED can also pursue individuals who have fled with stolen assets, or those found guilty of corruption in connection with their public duty or office.
ED mainly works with law enforcement agencies like police departments across India.
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