The Supreme Court recently imposed a penalty of Rs 1 lakh on an Enforcement Directorate (ED) official over wasting the court's time, following a Special Leave Petition filed by the official against the Allahabad High Court's order.
The Supreme Court's order dated October 20, slammed the Enforcement Directorate for filing a special leave petition (SLP) against an order of the Allahabad High Court granting bail to a cancer patient and imposed a cost of Rs 1 lakh on the concerned officer who gave permission to file the plea.
A bench of Justices MR Shah and MM Sundresh dismissed the case filed by ED and said that the agency ought not to have filed such a Special Leave Petition wasting the stationery, the legal fees and Court's time.
The top court said that the cost imposed on the officer is to be recovered from his salary and to be deposited by the ED with the Supreme Court Registry within four weeks.
It directed that the cost to be divided and transferred equally to the National Legal Services Authority and the Supreme Court's Mediation and Conciliation Project Committee.
"In the peculiar facts and circumstance of the case and taking into consideration the fact that the respondent is suffering from Malignancy and Cancer and thereafter when he has been released on bail, the same is not required to be interfered by this court... The Department ought not to have filed such a Special Leave Petition wasting the stationery, the legal fees and Court's time," the bench stated in its order.
The ED had challenged in the top court the bail granted by the Allahabad High Court in November 2021 to Kamal Ahsan, a relationship manager at Axis Bank in Prayagraj, in connection with a 2013 complaint.
The High Court had granted bail to Ahsan while noting that he cannot be put behind the bars for unlimited period. It also took into note that he was cooperating with the probe.
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