ED Summons Yami Gautam In Alleged FEMA Violation Case: What Is FEMA?

Actor Yami Gautam has been summoned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with an alleged violation of FEMA (Foreign Exchange Management Act).

As per reports, this is the second summon issued to Gautam and now she has been asked to visit the ED office in Mumbai on July 7 to record her statement with the agency.

An official related to the probe told IANS, "The agency has summoned Gautam to appear before it on July 7 to record her statement."

Mumbai: Enforcement Directorate (ED) summons actor Yami Gautam, asking her to appear before them next week to record her statement in connection with alleged irregularities under FEMA (Foreign Exchange Management Act).

(File photo) pic.twitter.com/orR0zzk2nn

— ANI (@ANI) July 2, 2021

Accusations against Yami Gautam 

According to Hindustan Times, senior ED officials said, a few years ago Yami Gautam was summoned as she had received an amount of over ₹1 crore in her bank account from an overseas entity. The actor didn’t disclose it and didn’t comply with mandatory FEMA Rules.

Meanwhile, her bank had informed the Central agency about the suspicious transaction from foreign countries involving an amount equivalent to over ₹1 crore in her bank account. Subsequently, the Central agency initiated enquiry proceedings against the actor last year under FEMA.

Previously, Gautam was slapped with a summon in 2020. However, due to the pandemic-induced lockdown restrictions, she didn’t visit the ED office. A fresh summon has been issued to her recently, an ED officer said.

What is FEMA?

FEMA or Foreign Exchange Management Act was formulated by the Indian government in 1999 to encourage external payments and cross-border trades in the country. It came in as a replacement of FERA (Foreign Exchange Regulation Act) to erase the loopholes and drawbacks of the act as well as aiming at major economic reforms. FEMA was primarily formulated to de-regularize and have a liberal Indian economy.

The main objective behind the act was to help facilitate external trade and payments while maintaining orderly development and maintenance of the foreign exchange market in the nation.