Enforcement Directorate
The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) is a domestic law enforcement agency and economic intelligence agency responsible for enforcing economic laws and fighting economic crimes in India. It is part of the Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance, Government Of India. The Enforcement Directorate focuses on investigating and prosecuting cases related to money laundering, foreign exchange violations, Co Corruption and economic offenses. Its primary objective is to curb the generation and circulation of black money and to ensure compliance with the laws concerning foreign exchange and prevention of money laundering. However, targets of the enforcement directorate have claimed that they misuse powers against activists, scholars, and political rivals.
| Enforcement Directorate प्रवर्तन निदेशालय | |
|---|---|
Official emblem of Enforcement Directorate | |
| Abbreviation | ED |
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | 1 May 1956 |
| Legal personality | Government agency |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Federal agency | India |
| Operations jurisdiction | India |
| Governing body | Government of India |
| Constituting instruments | |
| General nature | |
| Operational structure | |
| Headquarters | New Delhi, India |
| Minister responsible | |
| Agency executive |
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| Parent agency | Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance |
| Website | |
| enforcementdirectorate | |
| This article is part of a series on the |
| Politics of India |
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| India portal |
In July 2022, according to data shared by the union government in Parliament, only 23 people have been convicted in 5,422 cases registered under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in the 17 years after the law was passed, which is a conviction rate of less than 0.5%. Whereas the national conviction rate in India for offences of the Indian Penal Code is 57.0% in 2021.
The origin of the ED goes back to 1 May 1956, when an "enforcement unit" was formed, within the Department of Economic Affairs, for handling Exchange Control Laws violations under the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, 1947. In 1957, the unit was renamed as the Enforcement Directorate.