Alok Singh
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued guidelines that prohibit the summoning of advocates without prior approval from a Director, as outlined in Section 132 of the BSA, 2023.
On 20th June 2025, the ED released Technical Circular No. 03/2025, which withdrew a summons that was earlier sent to Senior Advocate Pratap Venugopal regarding an investigation into Care Health Insurance Ltd. The summons had been issued to seek information in his capacity as an Independent Director of the company. However, the ED acknowledged that issuing a summons to a practising advocate must comply with the protections granted under Section 132 of the Bhartiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023.
Accordingly, the Circular directs all ED field formations that no summons shall be issued to any advocate in violation of Section 132 of the BSA, which protects legal professionals from being compelled to disclose privileged communications. If a summons is required under the exceptions provided in the proviso to Section 132, it must receive prior written approval from the Director of Enforcement. These instructions are to be followed strictly, and a compliance report must be sent by 30 June 2025.
Click here to access the circular.
Instagram: Click here
LinkedIn: Click here
For Collaboration and Business: info.desikaanoon@gmail.com
