Refuting allegations by the opposition, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said the Enforcement Directorate (ED) is an independent agency and it is working independently while underlining that the government does not interfere with its work.
In an interview with Thanthi TV weeks before the Lok Sabha polls, the Prime Minister said that opposition parties are trying to use courts as a “weapon” to hinder the ED’s work because they know that Modi will not stop fighting against corruption.
“Did we create ED? Or PMLA? They were there before we formed the government. ED is an independent agency. It is working independently. Neither do we stop them, nor do we send them. They have to be right in the eyes of the law… ED has around 7,000 cases. They have only 3% of cases related to politicians. During UPA, ED seized Rs 35 lakh cash,” he said.
“During our government, Rs 2200 crore cash has been seized by the ED. Bundles of cash are being seized. Notes are being found in washing machines and pipes in houses. Rs 300 crore cash was seized from Congress MP. In Bengal, cash has been seized from many ministers. Will the people tolerate all this? No, they won’t,” he added.
The Prime Minister’s remarks came on a day when the opposition parties gathered in Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan to show solidarity with CM Arvind Kejriwal and former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, both arrested by the ED in different cases.
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Modi further said that he is taking legal advice to return cash, seized by the ED, to poor people in West Bengal who gave money to get jobs. “Rs 3,000 crore has been attached in Bengal… I am taking legal advice if this money can be returned to poor people who gave the money for jobs. We gave returned Rs 17,000 crore to people. People praise the ED,” he said.
When asked about the opposition’s allegation of ED not taking any action against BJP leaders, the PM said, “Jis bhi politician ka case hai woh chalega (Cases will continue no matter who the politician is).”
Modi further said that rallies are being organised to save corrupts.
“The ED cannot file a case as long as other agencies file an FIR first. For 10 years, they had a PMLA account but did not use it. There were over 150 court matters initiated to stop the PMLA law. To hinder the ED’s work, they are trying to use the courts as a weapon because they know that Modi will not stop fighting against corruption. Therefore, they want to remove the ED so that no one can fight against corruption,” he said.
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