ED sent reminder notice to Geelani to deposit 14.40 lakh fine

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has sent a reminder notice to hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, asking him to pay a fine of Rs 14.40 lakh imposed on him under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) within 10 days of receiving the notice. instructed to do.
The ED assistant director sent a reminder notice to Geelani directing him to pay a fine of Rs 14.40 lakh, which was imposed on him under FEMA. The notice further asked Geelani to deposit the amount in the form of demand draft within 10 days from the date of receipt of the notice.

The ED also said that if Geelani fails to deposit the amount within the stipulated time, action under FEMA will be initiated against him. The ED also asked Geelani to share whether any stay order has been passed against the fine imposed on him by any court or tribunal or authority, and if so, provide a copy of the same to the investigating agency.

The action comes nearly two years after the ED imposed a fine of Rs 14.40 lakh on Hurriyat (G) chairman Geelani for illegally possessing foreign currency of around $10,000 and Indian currency worth Rs 10 lakh. The ED had imposed a fine on Geelani in March 2019.

The financial probe agency had said that Geelani was fined following the seizure of unaccounted foreign currency from his premises in Jammu and Kashmir on March 20, 2019. An ED statement said that in the case of Syed Ali Shah Geelani for the offense of illegally possessing foreign exchange, on March 20, 2019, a fine of Rs 14.40 lakh has been imposed on him and foreign currency worth $10,000 has been forfeited. has been done.

The ED took up the matter after the Income Tax Department’s complaint against Geelani. On June 9, 2002, the Income Tax Department recovered $10,000 and Rs 10 lakh from the ground floor of Geelani’s residence in Hyderpora, Srinagar, and the money was confiscated by the agency.

The officials questioned Geelani’s wife Zawahira after the search, in which she had given some explanation about the seized Indian currency, but she could not explain the source of the seized foreign currency.

Based on the investigation under FEMA, the ED had registered the complaint on June 6, 2017. Accordingly, a show cause notice was issued to Geelani.