NEMICHAND JAIN ALIAS CHANDRA SWAMI Vs. ENFORCEMENT DIRECTORATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Petitioner Shri Nemi Chand Jain @ Shri Chandra Swami filed a suit for defamation in London against Shri Lakhu Bhai Pathak in the Court of the Queens Bench Division, London. By an order dated 13th January, 1986 the Court in London directed Shri Chandra Swami to deposit a sum of 6,000 Pounds in the Court as security towards the cost of the defendant in the said suit No. 6353 of 1984. On account of the plaintiff s failure to comply with the orders of the Court in London, the suit was dismissed. By an order dated 1st March 1988 that Court ordered that the said amount together with the accrued interest should be paid to the defendant s solicitors in partial satisfaction of the costs. Consequently a sum of 6638.29 pounds was paid to the defendant s solicitors on 16th March 1988.

(2.) The information regarding this payment was given to the Deputy Director (Enforcement), Directorate of Revenue Intelligence by the Central Bureau of Investigation ( CBI ) in August 1988. The CBI also forwarded the statement of one Mr.David Charles Crank a Solicitor representing Lakhu Bhai Pathak to the effect that as per the intimation received by him from M/s. Oswald Hickson Collier and Company, the Solicitors for Shri Chandra Swami, the said amount was deposited in the Court in London. In relation to the above deposit for and on behalf of Shri Chandra Swami without prior permission of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in contravention of Section 8(1) of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, 1973 ( FERA ) one Shri K. N. Aggarwal, Secretary of the Petitioner was questioned. He made a statement in which it was claimed that the said amount was deposited without the knowledge of Shri Chandra Swami by his devotees.

(3.) A complaint was filed on 31st May 1996 by the Enforcement Directorate against the petitioner under Section 56 FERA in the court of learned Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM), New Delhi. After the pre-charge evidence was recorded, summons was issued to the petitioner on 5th October 1996 for the offence under Section 8(1) FERA.