Sakina Tashrifwala
Published on: 17 November 2022 at 19:26 IST
The Delhi court granted actor Jacqueline Fernandez bail in the 200-crore money laundering case involving conman Sukesh Chandrashekar on a personal bond of 2 lakh.
The temporary bail granted to actor Jacqueline Fernandez, a citizen of Sri Lanka, on November 11 was extended till Tuesday because Special Judge Shailendra Malik had stated that the order was not yet ready.
Bollywood actor Jacqueline Fernandez adjourns after testifying before the Patiala House court in a case involving suspected conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar and money laundering.
The temporary protection granted to Fernandez, a citizen of Sri Lanka, on November 11 was extended till Tuesday because Special Judge Shailendra Malik had stated that the order was not yet ready.
After hearing from counsel representing both the actor and the Enforcement Directorate, the court on Thursday had deferred its decision (ED).
The central agency’s decision not to arrest Fernandez during the course of the case inquiry had been called into doubt by the court during the arguments.
According to the Judge, “Despite issuing a LOC, why haven’t you (ED) detained Jacqueline yet throughout the investigation? Why are you using different criteria when other defendants are in jail? “,
The court commented that, “A policy of pick and choose is not acceptable. There must be justifications for not arresting (an accused).”
Advocate Shailesh N Pathak, speaking on behalf of the agency, responded to the court’s question by stating that the Investigating Officer (IO) did not use his arrest authority because a Lookout Circular (LoC) was already open against the actor.
In the supplementary charge sheet, Fernandez, who had previously been subpoenaed by the ED in connection with the investigation, was for the first time listed as an accused.
She was not listed as an accused in either the original charge sheet or the supplemental charge sheet from the ED.
Interest may be assessed under Section 201(1A) of the IT Act, but the records had already stated the specifics of the comments made by Fernandez and fellow performer Nora Fatehi.