Corona breather for those facing ED investigations

NEW DELHI: The coronavirus outbreak has come as a breather for many of those facing investigations by the Enforcement Directorate, which has deferred the sessions it had scheduled as part of its probe into high-profile cases.
The agency has asked only 50% of its staff to be present at any given day till further orders, including those required to attend to urgent files.The ED director has instructed all officials across the country to take turns and come to office only when it is important to complete legal formalities in the ongoing court cases. In many high-profile money laundering cases, including the one against former finance minister P Chidambaram, the ED is in the process of filing prosecution complaint (chargesheet).
The agency is also considering moving a court in Mumbai against DHFL chairman Kapil Wadhawan seeking to cancel his bail as he cannot be traced. Measures are being considered to get IndiaBulls chairman Sameer Gehlaut once restrictions on travel from UK are relaxed. Gehlaut is currently in London and had failed to appear before the ED last week when summons were issued. Last Saturday, the ED questioned Essel Group chairman and BJP MP Subhash Chandra in a money launde ring case against Yes Bank co-founder Rana Kapoor.
The agency had also questioned Anil Ambani of Reliance ADA Group in the same case. Several other billionaires, including Gehlaut and Wadhawan, had cited the Covid-19 outbreak and travel restrictions as reasons for not appearing for questioning.
“We have asked our staff to come to office on alternate days and work from home wherever possible,” said a senior ED official. ED director S K Mishra and many of the zonal heads are, however, attending regularly and conducting coordination meetings via video conferencing, sources said.