In a temporary relief to former Keralam chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, the Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed for a week the investigation against him, his daughter and her husband in the alleged Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL) bribery case.
A vacation bench of justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana permitted Vijayan and others to approach the division bench of the Kerala High Court against a single judge order.
The top court was hearing petitions filed by Vijayan and others challenging the high court single judge’s order to direct registration of an FIR on the basis of information supplied by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) under Section 66(2) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
“We set aside the impugned order and permit the petitioners to pursue the appeal before the division bench. We make it clear that our observations are limited to the issue at hand, that is, the locus of the petitioners to prefer the appeal, and not an expression of opinion on merits.
“To enable the petitioners to pursue the appeal on its merits, we give liberty to the petitioners to pursue the appeal as well as seek interim relief in accordance with law. To enable the petitioners to do so, we direct that the investigation in the impugned First Information Report shall remain stayed for a week,” the bench said.
The top court also asked the ED not to meddle into the statutory domain of other entities.
During the hearing, the apex court remarked, “Do your examination under the Prevention of Money-Laundering Act. File your complaint... You have got a scheduled offence. Go ahead with your prosecution. Don’t extend your hand beyond your statutory limits. We are making your client (ED) very clear. Don’t use the process of statutory powers to meddle into the statutory domain of other entities.”
“We are fully clear about what you have done and what the high court has done. We will maintain the FIR but no investigation until and unless these issues are decided by the appellate court,” Justice Bagchi orally remarked.