ED tells Supreme Court officers can approach top court under Article 32 if law and order is breached

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday contended before the Supreme Court that its officers were well within their legal right to approach the top court under Article 32 if there is breach of law and order.

Representing the agency, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta contended that facts emerging in West Bengal demonstrate violation of Article 14 (equality before law).

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Contending that rule of law stands violated, Mehta submitted that "this is a case where there is illegal smuggling of coal and the total amount runs to ₹2,700 crore. The ED and their individual officers who are also citizens of India discharging their statutory functions are seeking protection of their fundamental rights".

He said as rule of law is part of Article 14, the pleas filed by ED and its officers under Article 32 are maintainable. "Rule of law means wherever and whenever the state fails to perform its duty, the court can step in. The facts and circumstances which I have already pointed out result in violation of Article 14 of the officers who went there to discharge their duties," Mehta said.

He said the ED officers' official capacity and individual capacity cannot be divorced from each other. Mehta clarified that he was not arguing that there was a complete breakdown of constitutional machinery in West Bengal. Mehta made it clear that ED's argument is that there was a breach of the rule of law in the I-PAC case, and it should not be understood as a failure of constitutional machinery.