Key Points
In the statement, Modi was quoted as saying that he would explore legal options to see how money looted from the poor is returned to them through assets and money the Enforcement Directorate (ED) attached from the corrupt...
However, the law as it stands today, clearly states that till the time a case is under investigation and the trial is complete, leading to a conviction or acquittal, the custody of attached assets and cash, remains with the agency as its custodian and cannot be utilised in any manner.. Further, in case of an acquittal, the seized cash or assets are released and returned to the aggrieved party on court orders and in case of a conviction, directed to the central government, experts told ThePrint...
According to the law as it stands today, at the conclusion of the trial, if the court finds that the offence of money laundering has been committed and that said property was in any way involved in the act, the same will be confiscated by the central government..
The court can also direct the central government to restore the confiscated property or part of it to the claimant if the presiding officers find that he or she suffered losses due to the offence of money laundering...
Rajya Sabha MP Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharyya of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), who is a lawyer by profession, said it is difficult to return money seized in such cases because establishing victims, accused and the money and interlinking them is a very difficult process to follow...
