Direct answer
Track the predicate case precisely; do not assume either automatic merger or irrelevance
Identify the scheduled entry, alleged offence, date, criminal activity, persons named, property or loss, investigation result and current judicial status. A person may be named in one record and absent from another; charges may be altered; some accused may settle or obtain quashing while other allegations remain. The exact operative order controls, not a news report or party summary.
Then examine the PMLA complaint or investigation for the property said to arise from that activity and the conduct attributed to the PMLA accused. Developments such as cancellation, closure, discharge, quashing or acquittal can be material, but their effect depends on finality, scope, surviving scheduled allegations, the person and current binding law. Every authority should receive the complete order and procedural history.
Legal analysis
Four predicate-record questions shape the PMLA case
The analysis begins with the certified criminal record and then crosses to the PMLA property and role allegations.
Which scheduled entry?
Confirm that the alleged offence and version applicable to the period falls within the PMLA Schedule. Section numbers and amendments should be checked from the statute and charge record.
Practical focus: Attach the relevant scheduled entry and explain the alleged conduct, not only the citation.
What criminal activity and property?
Identify the act said to generate property and quantify it. The FIR loss, charge-sheet amount and ED proceeds figure may not match.
Practical focus: Create a three-column amount comparison with reasons and source pages.
What is the current procedural status?
Record investigation, cognizance, charges, settlement, quashing, trial and appeal status. An order for one accused or offence may not dispose of all allegations.
Practical focus: Use certified complete orders and note pending challenges or finality.
What separate PMLA conduct is alleged?
Even where the person committed the scheduled offence, the PMLA complaint should identify connected property and process or activity. Conversely, a PMLA accused need not always be accused in the predicate case, but the property foundation remains relevant.
Practical focus: Map the PMLA role without importing guilt from association.
Evidence plan
The cross-case index should make developments impossible to miss
Maintain certified orders and a shared chronology, but preserve the legal distinction between the cases.
| Record | What it may establish | What it cannot establish by itself |
|---|---|---|
| Predicate FIR or complaint | Original allegation, offences, persons and period | Final investigation result or PMLA conduct |
| Final report or charge-sheet | Investigated allegations and evidence cited | Judicial findings or guilt |
| Cognizance and charge orders | Offences and persons proceeding to trial | Final outcome or property tracing |
| Quashing, discharge or acquittal orders | Scope and reason of judicial relief | Effect on parties or allegations outside the order |
| PMLA complaint and property schedule | Separate laundering and proceeds theory | Truth of the predicate criminal activity |
| Appeal and stay records | Finality and operative status | Automatic reversal of every connected order |
Response roadmap
Coordinate predicate and PMLA developments in real time
- 01
Build the certified predicate set
Collect FIR, final report, cognizance, charges, trial and appellate orders. Record which are interim and final.
- 02
Identify the scheduled entry
Check the offence, relevant period and Schedule rather than relying on the agency's shorthand.
- 03
Reconcile alleged property figures
Compare predicate loss or benefit with the ED's proceeds calculation and trace any difference.
- 04
Map PMLA conduct separately
State the process or activity attributed to each person and the evidence, without copying the predicate narrative.
- 05
Place developments before the correct forum
Use complete orders in bail, trial, attachment and appellate records, and explain the legal consequence sought at that stage.
Delhi forum context
The predicate court and PMLA forums require coordinated but distinct filings
The scheduled-offence case may be before a police court, CBI court or another Special Court, while the PMLA complaint proceeds before the notified PMLA Special Court. Orders should be promptly exchanged across records through lawful filings where material.
A Delhi High Court or Supreme Court challenge must disclose all relevant proceedings and finality. Partial settlement or relief for a co-accused should not be described as universal termination.
Focused questions
Questions commonly arising at this stage
Must a person be accused in the predicate case to face PMLA proceedings?
The precise law and facts must be applied. PMLA attribution can concern a person said to be involved in a process or activity connected with proceeds of crime, while the existence and nature of scheduled criminal activity remain foundational.
Does compromise of the predicate dispute end PMLA?
Not automatically. The legal effect depends on the offence, court order, scope, remaining allegations, finality and current binding law. A private compromise and a judicial quashing order are not the same instrument.
What if the predicate case ends in acquittal?
The complete final order and any appeal must be examined against current PMLA law and the particular proceeds allegation. Do not rely on the word acquittal without its grounds, scope and finality.
Can the ED investigate before the predicate charge-sheet?
PMLA investigation can develop while the scheduled-offence investigation is pending, subject to the statutory framework. The defence should track later changes in the predicate record and place them before the relevant forum.
Primary materials
Official sources for verification
Use the current statutory text, rules, notifications, roster and orders. This page is an issue map, not a substitute for checking the live record.
Case preparation
Convert the papers into a dated, transaction-level brief
For an initial assessment, organise the latest summons or order, case particulars, a one-page chronology, the relevant bank or property trail, and the exact next deadline. Do not alter, rename or selectively delete electronic records.
Part of the PMLA & Enforcement Directorate research cluster. Substantive legal propositions must be checked against the current Act, rules, notifications and binding decisions applicable to the actual record.