Assets of fugitives can now be seized

NEW DELHI: The Lok Sabha on Thursday passed a bill that empowers authorities to attach and confiscate the assets of fugitive economic offenders and aims to deter them from fleeing the country in an attempt to evade prosecution.

The Fugitive Economic Offenders Bill, 2018 replaces the fugitive economic offenders’ ordinance that was promulgated in April to initiate seizure of assets of jewellers Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi, who fled the country after being accused of the ₹13,000crore-Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud.

The bill allows for a person to be declared a fugitive economic offender if an arrest warrant is issued against him/her for any specified offence involving over Rs 100 crore and the accused leaves the country and refuses to return to face prosecution.

Speaking during a two-hourlong debate on the bill, finance minister Piyush Goyal said the proposed legislation will ensure justice is not denied.

He said the government’s move to bring an ordinance reflected its “aggressiveness” in taking action against black money offenders.

Initiating the debate, Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) member NK Premchandran said he supported the provisions of the bill but added that the government should not have brought an ordinance.

Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Nishikant Dubey blamed the previous UPA government for the rise in non-performing assets of the banks.

Congress’ Shashi Tharoor, however, said the bill was poorly drafted and would not withstand the judicial scrutiny. He questioned the logic behind the provision putting the minimum value of offence at ₹100 crore.