The Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption informed the Central Bureau of Investigation about the arrest of Enforcement Directorate officer Ankit Tiwari near Dindigul on a bribery charge and search on his office premises in Madurai, a top police officer in the State investigating agency said on Sunday.
“We informed the Joint Director, CBI, in writing about the arrest of the Enforcement Directorate officer and the searches that followed. The information was shared as per the DVAC manual. The investigation can be handed over to the CBI…but since the Tamil Nadu government has withdrawn the general consent for the central agency to operate in the State, we will continue the probe,” the officer told The Hindu.
Dismissing allegations by the ED that the search operation was illegal, he said the procedure as prescribed in the CrPC was followed in the case. The designated court was informed about the searches planned in the ED’s South Zonal Office in Madurai soon after the arrest of Enforcement Officer Ankit Tiwari.
On the powers of the DVAC to register a case against a Central government employee, the officer said it was agreed upon (between the Centre and the State) that the DVAC may take immediate action in respect of a Central government employee in circumstances where a “trap” has to be laid to catch a Central government employee red-handed and there is no time to contact any representative of the Delhi Special Police Establishment Division, the CBI.
Such a trap could be laid by the State agency and thereafter, the CBI be informed immediately and a decision to be taken in consultation with them whether the further investigation should be carried out and completed by the State agency or not
Court informed
As regards the searches, the manual laid down that “where there is likelihood of disappearance of or damage to evidence, if immediate action is not taken, the State agency may take necessary steps to secure the evidence and thereafter, hand over the case to the Delhi Special Police Establishment Division for further investigation.”
The officer said the DVAC team reached the ED office in Madurai around 2 p.m. and informed the authorities there that they had come to conduct searches. However, the ED officials asked them to wait saying that a senior officer would come from Chennai.
“Our team waited for almost three hours and none came. They called in the Into-Tibetan Border Police for deployment…DVAC team alerted the local police and entered the premises fearing that attempts were on to prevent them from discharging their lawful duties,” he said.
