The Delhi High Court on Thursday said it will pass an order on Friday on TMC leader Mahua Moitra’s petition against the purported leakage of “confidential” details from the Enforcement Directorate to the media concerning an investigation against her under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).
The legal representative for the former MP asserted that she was being persistently pursued, and the media disclosed information about summons issued to her by the agency even before she was officially served.
Justice Subramonium Prasad remarked orally that, at present, there was no concrete evidence as the news report in question merely made factual assertions. “That is news. You are a public person. It is only a factual assertion…As of now, there is nothing,” the judge remarked.
Senior advocate Rebecca John, representing Moitra, argued that she did not oppose the agency’s right to conduct investigations but emphasised that such leaks to the media were prejudicial to her. “It is about information being leaked prior to it being communicated to me. (If there is no press release) ED is drip feeding sensitive and confidential information about me,” John contended.
“Orders for tomorrow,” the court stated.
Advocate Sidhant Kumar, appearing for a news organisation, stated that the petitioner was a public figure facing allegations that were already in the public domain, thus making it a subject of public debate. He mentioned that there was nothing detrimental in the matter, and media reports were based on sources.
The counsel for the ED maintained that there was no release or “leakage” from its side. The ED has summoned Moitra in connection with a case under the FEMA). Transactions linked to a non-resident external (NRE) account are under the agency’s scrutiny in the case, along with several other foreign remittances and fund transfers, as per the sources.