Aastha Thakur
Published on: 20 September, 2022 at 19:45 IST
The Delhi High Court adjourned the hearing of Delhi Minister Satyendar Jain’s bail plea to January 5, who is currently behind bars in Tihar Jail. He is convicted of the charges under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The case was postponed due to the unavailability of Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma, who is hearing the matter.
The AAP leader moved the High Court against the trial court denying him bail in the case on November 17.
On December 1, the single-judge bench issued notice to the ED to file its response against the bail plea within 2 weeks.
The bail plea states that he is not in a condition to influence witnesses or tamper with evidence to jeopardise the trial. Hence, he should be granted relief in the case related to ED’s ECIR (the equivalent of a FIR) registered on September 30, 2017.
The application further submits that both the Special Judge and the ED made mistakes in their interpretation of the PMLA, focusing solely on the crime on the basis of accommodation entries, which itself could not lead to a punishable offence under the Act.
The counsel argued that even if there is a case against the petitioner, the notional amount attributable to Jain was ₹59 lakh, for which he is entitled to bail under Section 45 of the PMLA.
ED claims that while Jain was serving as a public servant, he owned companies “beneficially owned and controlled by him.” He encompassed amount of ₹ 4.81 crore from shell companies against the cash transferred to Kolkata-based entry operators through a hawala routes.
In an earlier hearing before Special Judge Vikas Dhull of Rouse Avenue, the Court refused to furnish him with bail on the grounds that he was preventing the investigation from being completed.
The ED claimed that using his influential power, he has converted his “black money into white” and guilty of tampering with evidences.
The defence counsel, however, contended that Jain’s only fault was that he became a minister and joined a life dedicated to the welfare of people. Apart from this, there was nothing in the case, that could be attributed to the AAP leader.
The next date given by the court is January 5, 2023.