Hindi English Translation || Editorial || Selective prosecution: on the Enforcement Directorate and political leaders

Selective prosecution: on the Enforcement Directorate and political leaders

Probe agencies should not allow politics to colour their investigation

Politics and law may be inseparable (अवियोज्य), but the first may sometimes overshadow the second, especially when it comes to prosecution (अभियोजन) of political leaders. An ongoing (जारी, चलता हुआ) example is the spike (a sharp rise/increase of something) in the activity of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) (प्रवर्तन निदेशालय) in Tamil Nadu. Close on the heels of (close behind, soon after, immediately after, following closely) the arrest of V. Senthilbalaji, now a Minister without portfolio (विभाग) in the DMK regime (प्रशासन), and the legal wrangling (long dispute, argument, quarrel) over the legality (वैधता) of his arrest and remand (this term is used to refer to the sending back of the accused or prisoner to the custody of a competent authority; pre-trial detention, preventive detention, or provisional detention), another high-profile (prominent, most important, attracting much public attention) Minister, K. Ponmudy, is under the ED’s investigation. While the agency may have good reason to investigate and prosecute (मुक़दमा करना) them, it does appear that they have been chosen for such action from among many political functionaries (पदाधिकारी) in the State who have pending probes (investigation, inquiry) against them. Both Mr. Senthilbalaji, who has now been shifted from a private hospital to a prison in Chennai, and Mr. Ponmudy, the Minister for Higher Education, face serious charges. Mr. Senthilbalaji was embroiled (उलझाना) in a cash-for-jobs scam (घोटाला, अवैध योजना) during his stint (कार्यकाल) as Transport Minister in an earlier AIADMK regime, and had tried to wriggle out (to avoid doing something (task/duty/responsibility) using clever excuses; dodge, evade, elude, sidestep) of it after money allegedly (अभिकथित रूप से) collected from job aspirant (महत्वाकांक्षी, उम्मीदवार) candidates by intermediaries (agent, broker, middleman) was “returned” to them. However, court orders have kept the investigation alive. In the case of Mr. Ponmudy, he is accused of allowing red sand quarrying (the process of removing rock, sand, gravel or other minerals from the ground in order to use them to produce materials for construction or other uses) in excess of (more than, beyond, over and above) permissible (allowed, authorized, acceptable, legitimate, lawful) limits as a Minister for Mines and Mineral Resources between 2007 and 2011; and granting (give, provide, present) quarrying licences to his son, friends and relatives.

The ED entered the picture to probe possible money laundering (a secret act of moving illegally acquired funds into legal bank accounts or investments) in handling the proceeds (the amount of money received from an event/activity or from the sale of goods or services; income, revenue, profit, earnings, returns, gains) of the crimes. The agency has successfully warded off a stiff (strong, severe, powerful, vigorous) challenge to the legality of Mr. Senthilbalaji’s arrest and remand, but it must do more to put all facts in the public domain (if something (e.g. information) is in the public domain, people generally know about it since it is no secret) to show that its actions are justified (give reasons for, show/prove to be reasonable, explain, defend, uphold, validate, vindicate, warrant). However, except for some court-ordered CBI probes and income-tax proceedings (lawsuit, litigation, legal proceedings, legal action), central agencies appear to be doing little by way of (by means of) pursuing (engage in, take part in, be occupied in, participate in (an activity)) allegations (accusation, charge, indictment) against members of the erstwhile AIADMK regime. The issue of granting sanction (official approval permission, authority, warrant, validation) to the CBI to prosecute former AIADMK Ministers is “under legal consideration”, according (give, grant, present) to the Tamil Nadu Governor, even while the Union Home Ministry has accorded sanction in respect of (concerning, regarding, with reference to, in the matter of) two former IPS officers in the same case. It will be difficult to credit (believe, accept, have confidence/faith in, trust, depend on) central agencies with taking timely (prompt, well timed, at the right time, opportune, appropriate) action against corruption, if only parties identified with the Opposition are brought under their investigative ambit (limits, range, scope, extent, purview, reach). Venality (corruptible state; a state of being vulnerable to be corrupt/bribery/grafting) among political leaders is a fact in respect of some and a perception (understanding, discernment, recognition/realization; interpretation) suffered by all those in public life. Therefore, agencies statutorily (legitimately, permissibly, judicially/legally) empowered (authorize, allow, permit, entitle) to investigate and prosecute them must demonstrate their fairness (impartiality, neutrality, justness, justice, equity, detachment, disinterest) and impartiality, if their searches, raids and arrests are to command (receive, get, gain, obtain, secure) credibility (trustworthiness, reliability, reputation, integrity, acceptability) among the public.

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.selective (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - चयनात्मक
English Meaning - particular, picky, choosy, discriminatory.

2.prosecution (noun)

Hindi Meaning - अभियोजन
English Meaning - legal action, legal proceeding, legal case.

3.Enforcement Directorate (ED) (noun)

Hindi Meaning - प्रवर्तन निदेशालय
English Meaning - Directorate of Enforcement is a specialized financial investigation agency under the Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance, Government of India. It was established in the year 1956 with its Headquarters at New Delhi. It is responsible for enforcement of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA) (Civil Law) and certain provisions under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) (Criminal Law).

4.inseparable (noun)

Hindi Meaning - अवियोज्य
English Meaning - impossible to separate; indivisible, inextricable, connected, integral, close.

5.ongoing (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - जारी, चलता हुआ
English Meaning - current, existing, continuing, happening, occurring, in progress, underway.

6.portfolio (noun)

Hindi Meaning - विभाग
English Meaning - the area of responsibility (department) assigned to a Minister.

7.regime (noun)

Hindi Meaning - प्रशासन
English Meaning - government, administration.

8.legality (noun)

Hindi Meaning - वैधता
English Meaning - lawfulness, legitimacy, validity.

9.prosecute (verb)

Hindi Meaning - मुक़दमा करना
English Meaning - take to court, bring an action against, take legal action against, accuse, charge.

10.functionary (noun)

Hindi Meaning - पदाधिकारी
English Meaning - official, administrator, office-holder, office-bearer (in a government or political party).

11.embroil (verb)

Hindi Meaning - उलझाना
English Meaning - involve, connect, incriminate, implicate, enmesh, inculpate (someone in a crime).

12.scam (noun)

Hindi Meaning - घोटाला, अवैध योजना
English Meaning - fraudulent scheme, illegal scheme, swindle, racket.

13.stint (noun)

Hindi Meaning - कार्यकाल
English Meaning - period, time, spell, turn.

14.allegedly (adverb)

Hindi Meaning - अभिकथित रूप से
English Meaning - apparently, seemingly, ostensibly, supposedly, purportedly.

15.aspirant (noun)

Hindi Meaning - महत्वाकांक्षी, उम्मीदवार
English Meaning - seeker, candidate, contender.

16.colour (verb)

English Meaning - influence, affect, distort.

17.overshadow (verb)

English Meaning - dominate, command; be far superior to, outshine, outclass, outdo.

18.spike (noun)

English Meaning - a sharp rise/increase of something.

19.close on the heels of (phrase)

English Meaning - close behind, soon after, immediately after, following closely.

20.wrangling (noun)

English Meaning - long dispute, argument, quarrel.

21.remand (noun)

English Meaning - this term is used to refer to the sending back of the accused or prisoner to the custody of a competent authority; pre-trial detention, preventive detention, or provisional detention.

22.high-profile (adjective)

English Meaning - prominent, most important, attracting much public attention.

23.probe (noun)

English Meaning - investigation, inquiry.

24.wriggle out (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - to avoid doing something (task/duty/responsibility) using clever excuses; dodge, evade, elude, sidestep.

25.intermediary (noun)

English Meaning - agent, broker, middleman.

26.keep alive (phrase)

English Meaning - maintain, continue, carry on with, keep going, prolong.

27.quarrying (noun)

English Meaning - the process of removing rock, sand, gravel or other minerals from the ground in order to use them to produce materials for construction or other uses.

28.in excess of (phrase)

English Meaning - more than, beyond, over and above.

29.permissible (adjective)

English Meaning - allowed, authorized, acceptable, legitimate, lawful.

30.grant (verb)

English Meaning - give, provide, present.

31.enter the picture (noun)

English Meaning - to get involved in something.

32.money laundering (noun)

English Meaning - a secret act of moving illegally acquired funds into legal bank accounts or investments.

33.proceeds (noun)

English Meaning - the amount of money received from an event/activity or from the sale of goods or services; income, revenue, profit, earnings, returns, gains.

34.ward off (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - prevent, block, stop, resist, oppose, repel, drive back, beat back, chase away, turn away, beat off, fend off, stave off.

35.stiff (adjective)

English Meaning - strong, severe, powerful, vigorous.

36.in the public domain/realm (phrase)

English Meaning - if something (e.g. information) is in the public domain, people generally know about it since it is no secret.

37.justify (verb)

English Meaning - give reasons for, show/prove to be reasonable, explain, defend, uphold, validate, vindicate, warrant.

38.proceedings (noun)

English Meaning - lawsuit, litigation, legal proceedings, legal action.

39.central agencies (plural noun)

English Meaning - the central agencies are organizations in the executive branch that co-ordinate the activities of, and provide guidance to the operating ministries and agencies; e.g. Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Income Tax Department (IT) and etc.

40.by way of (phrase)

English Meaning - by means of.

41.pursue (verb)

English Meaning - engage in, take part in, be occupied in, participate in (an activity).

42.allegation (noun)

English Meaning - accusation, charge, indictment.

43.erstwhile (adjective)

English Meaning - old, previous, former, then.

44.sanction (noun)

English Meaning - official approval permission, authority, warrant, validation.

45.under consideration (phrase)

English Meaning - being discussed; being deliberated; being thought about.