The Supreme Court of India has stayed all ongoing investigations by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) into alleged financial irregularities at Tamil Nadu’s state-run TASMAC (Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation), criticizing the agency for overstepping its authority.
A bench led by Chief Justice BR Gavai and Justice AG Masih issued a notice to the ED while hearing a Special Leave Petition filed by TASMAC. The petition challenges an earlier Madras High Court order from April 23 that had dismissed TASMAC’s plea against ED’s search and seizure operation conducted between March 6–8, 2025, at its Chennai headquarters.
The Supreme Court expressed serious concern over the ED’s conduct.
“Your ED has been crossing all limits, Mr. Raju,” the bench told Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, who was representing the agency.
The court questioned the legality of initiating a case against an entire corporation rather than individuals, noting the absence of a clear predicate offence (a base crime that justifies a money laundering investigation).
“How can you register a case against a corporation? You may register against individuals, but how against a corporation?” the bench asked.
ASG Raju argued that the predicate offence involved a multi-crore laundering case, but the court found the justification vague.
Senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Mukul Rohatgi, representing TASMAC and its employees, accused the ED of violating privacy rights by cloning phones and seizing personal devices without due process.
“There is something called privacy,” said Rohatgi, urging the court to prevent the use of any extracted data.
The ruling comes weeks after the SC declined Tamil Nadu’s earlier request to transfer the case away from the Madras High Court, which had scolded the state for “forum shopping” and attempting to bypass proper legal channels.
