On Thursday, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) report released stated that groups operating in Jammu and Kashmir pose a threat to India by supporting terrorist activities.
“India’s main sources of money laundering originate from within, from illegal activities committed within country,” stated the organisation with its headquarters located in Paris. The country was confronted with a “disparate” array of terror threats, with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIL) and Al Qaeda-affiliated groups (AQ) being the greatest threat. These groups were mostly active in and around Jammu and Kashmir. The international agency assessed India’s effectiveness in “money laundering investigation and prosecution” as “moderately” in its most recent report.
As per FATF, constitutional challenges and an overburdened court system have had an impact on money laundering convictions in India over the last five years. It stated that many cases in India’s courts are backlogged and remain unresolved for years.
Over the previous five years, the Enforcement Directorate took assets worth €9.3 billion ($10.4 billion) from suspected financial criminals, according to the report. However, the total amount of confiscations after conviction was less than $5 million. “It is critical India addresses these issues in view of accused persons waiting for cases to be tried and prosecutions to be concluded,” it added.