FUGITIVE ECONOMIC OFFENDER Flashcards
Who is a Fugitive Economic Offender?
Any individual against whom a warrant for arrest in relation to a Scheduled Offence has been issued by any Court in India, who-
(i) has left India so as to avoid criminal prosecution; or
(ii) being abroad, refuses to return to India to face criminal prosecution;
(iii) an arrest warrant has been issued against him for any specified offences where the value involved is over Rs 100
crore.
Scheduled Offence under the Act is a list of offences appended to the Schedule of the Act (provided the total value involved is more that Rs. 100 Crores)
Process under FEO
Application: The authorities appointed under the PMLA may file an application before a Special Court (designated under the PMLA) to declare a person an FEO. The application shall contain: (i) reasons to believe that an individual is an FEO, (ii) information about his whereabouts, (iii) list of benami properties, properties believed to be proceeds of crime, or foreign properties for which confiscation is sought, and (iv) list of persons having an interest in these properties.
Attachment: Authorities may attach any property mentioned in the
application with the permission of the Special Court. The attachment
will continue for 180 days, which may be extended by the Special Court. They may provisionally attach any property without the permission of the Special Court, if they file an application before the court within 30 days
Notice: The Special Court will issue a notice to the individual:
(i) requiring him to appear at a specified place on a date which is at least six weeks after the issue of notice, and (ii) stating that a failure to appear will result in him being declared an FEO. Notice may also be served at the individual’s email address recorded in the PAN or Aadhaar databases.
Proceedings: If the person appears, the Special Court will terminate proceedings. If the person does not appear in person, but is represented by his counsel, the Special Court may allow
the counsel a week to file a reply. If, at the conclusion of proceedings, the person is found not to be an FEO, his attached properties will be released.
Declaration: If the person does not appear in person or through his
counsel at the stipulated time, the Special Court will proceed with hearing the application. After hearing the application, the Special Court
may declare the person an FEO.
Confiscation: The Special Court may confiscate properties of an FEO which are proceeds of crime, benami properties, or any other properties. These properties may be in India or abroad. The Special Court may exempt
certain properties from confiscation where any other person has a
legitimate interest in them. Upon confiscation, all rights and titles in
the property will vest in the central government, free from encumbrances (claims or rights in the property). The central government may dispose these properties after 90 days.
Bar on civil claims:
Any court or tribunal may bar an FEO from filing or defending any civil claim before it. The court may bar a company or a limited liability partnership from filing or defending any civil claim if the promoter, key managerial personnel manager, managing director, or CEO), or majority shareholder has such been declared an FEO.
Appeal- FEO
Appeals against the orders of the Special Court will lie before the High Court. Such appeal can only be filed within 30
days of the order (extendable to 90 days if the High Court is satisfied with the reasons for delay).
