The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed five District Collectors of Tamil Nadu to appear before the Enforcement Directorate in connection with an ongoing money laundering probe pertaining to alleged illegal sand mining.

A bench of justices Bela M Trivedi and Pankaj Mithal termed the plea of Tamil Nadu and its officials against the ED summons as “strange and unusual” and stayed the Madras High Court order granting the relief to the five district collectors.

“The writ petition (of Tamil Nadu and others in the high court) is thoroughly misconceived. Accordingly, the execution of the impugned order (of the high court) is stayed and thus the district collectors shall appear before the Enforcement Directorate on the next date,” the bench said in its order.

Earlier, the bench said the State machinery should help the ED in finding out if an offence has been committed as there is no harm in it.

The central probe agency had summoned the district collectors of Vellore, Tiruchirappalli, Karur, Thanjavur and Ariyalur in connection with its probe in the money laundering case related to alleged illegal sand mining. The officers were summoned as witnesses, the ED had said.

The state government along with the bureaucrats had moved the high court that stayed the summons issued by the ED. The probe agency has moved the top court against the high court order.

The ED’s plea came up for hearing before the top court.