Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh's son and daughter on Tuesday challenged in the Delhi High Court, the Enforcement Directorate's order to provisionally attach their properties in a money laundering case.
"The Enforcement Directorate's action is 'pre-emptive, presumptuous and arbitrary' and hence has no authority to initiate attachment proceeding against the petitioners", the Chief Minister's daughter Aparajita Kumari and son Vikramaditya Singh said in their petition.
They sought the quashing of the ED's order of March 23 issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The Delhi High Court had earlier today asked Singh to cooperate with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) so that the probe may conclude soon.
The court also asked Singh to appear before the agency at the earliest.
Earlier in the day, the CBI submitted in the court that the evidences against Singh are very crucial. Stating that the case is very serious, the CBI said the investigation is being hampered due to the stay granted by the Himachal Pradesh High Court.
The Delhi High Court will resume the hearing in this case tomorrow.
The Himachal Pradesh High Court had earlier passed an interim order, saying the CBI cannot interrogate, arrest or chargesheet Singh without its permission. The CBI has filed a plea in the Delhi High Court against this order.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached some of the assets of the Chief Minister worth Rs. eight crores in connection with the money laundering case.
On March 16, the Delhi High Court had refused to grant a stay on the proceedings initiated by the ED against him.
The ED had last year registered a money laundering case against Singh and others under provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after taking cognizance of a criminal complaint filed by the CBI in this regard.
