Overview
- The court imposed ₹30,000 in costs after the Enforcement Directorate failed to file counter-affidavits in three writ petitions.
- A division bench of Justices M. S. Ramesh and V. Lakshminarayanan fined ₹10,000 per petition and granted a final extension for the filings.
- Film producer Akash Baskaran and businessman Vikram Ravindran challenge the legality of the ED’s May 15 searches, arguing the authorisations lacked jurisdiction.
- On June 20 the High Court stayed all proceedings against the petitioners after finding no incriminating material justified the searches.
- The next hearing on the contempt petition is scheduled for August 20, by which date the ED must submit its comprehensive counter-affidavits.