NEW DELHI — Following a 2024 Kerala High Court judgment limiting its powers under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, the Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday strongly objected to the court's "unrealistic expectation" that a scheduled predicate offense must actually exist before launching an investigation into its proceeds.

"This ruling fundamentally misunderstands our workflow," said a senior official, noting that the agency has long relied on a 2022 Supreme Court decision upholding its robust mechanism of maintaining a high arrest rate alongside a low conviction rate. "If we are required to establish a predicate offense before conducting a roving inquiry into a state government official, it could delay our pre-election deployments by months."

Legal experts note the judgment creates a legal grey area by forcing the agency to prioritize due process over its traditional role as a political tool for the central government.

"For years, we have successfully operated on the principle that if we investigate someone long enough, a crime will eventually present itself," an agency spokesperson added, carefully packing away a stack of blank summons files. "Now the court wants us to work backwards."