The Supreme Court has set aside the Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) filed against retired IPS officer MS Jaffar Sait, effectively putting an end to the money laundering case initiated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
A Bench comprising Justices Abhay S. Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan highlighted procedural lapses in how the Madras High Court handled the matter. While the High Court had initially quashed the ECIR on August 21, 2024, after the ED conceded that the underlying predicate offence had been nullified in 2019, the case was unexpectedly relisted for hearing just two days later—August 23—without any formal notification to the concerned parties.
The Supreme Court, which had stayed the High Court’s subsequent relisting order on September 6, 2024, requested a report from the Registrar General of the Madras High Court. The report confirmed that a final order had indeed been passed on August 21 and that only oral directions had been issued for relisting the case, not a formal order.
Criticizing this, the apex court observed:
“Basic principles of natural justice required the Bench to notify the parties, particularly the appellant, before recalling a final order.”
The case stemmed from allegations that Sait had illegally obtained a Tamil Nadu Housing Board plot in 2011, with an investigation originally launched by the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC). However, since the predicate corruption case had already been quashed, the Supreme Court ruled that the ED’s ECIR had no legal foundation.
The Court also clarified that the ED would have the right to revive the ECIR if the earlier order quashing the predicate offence is overturned in the future.
Senior Advocate Gopal Sankarnarayanan appeared for MS Jaffar Sait, while Advocate Zoheb Hossain represented the ED.
