Supreme Court grants bail to Bhushan Steel former MD Neeraj Singal in money laundering case
Neeraj Singal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on 09-06-2023 in a bank fraud and money laundering case
Neeraj Singal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on 09-06-2023 in a bank fraud and money laundering case
The Court quashed the complaint, charge sheet, and charges framed by the Designated Special Court, Srinagar, under the PMLA.
The Court stated that overall conspectus of the case based on broad probabilities does not specifically or indirectly assign the petitioner to be involved in the acquisition and possession as well as concealment of 8.86 acres of land at Shanti Nagar connected to the “proceeds of crime”.
“In the present case, the Special Court has taken into account the nature of the case against the petitioner and factum of his non-cooperation and other relevant factors while remanding the petitioner into police custody.”
Hemant Soren was arrested on 31-01-2024 and resigned from the post of Chief Minister of Jharkhand on the same day.
The Court opined that since Enforcement Case Investigation Report (‘ECIR’) is not a condition precedent for starting an investigation or inquiry by the Enforcement Directorate and is only an internal record of the department, its quashing would serve no purpose whatsoever.
The Enforcement Officer Ankit Tiwari was accused of an offence punishable under Section 7(a) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
The Court followed by hearing the application under Section 207 of CrPC moved on behalf of Kejriwal.
The Court took note that Soren had earlier filed a plea under Article 226 of the Constitution before the High Court but opted for withdrawal of the same to approach the Supreme Court.
Calcutta High Court noted the registration of a counter FIR before an FIR about the attacks on Enforcement Directorate officials, casting doubt on police impartiality.
In August 2023, the Supreme Court granted interim bail to Nawab Malik for two months, which was subsequently extended in October 2023 by three months.
by Vasanth Rajasekaran† and Harshvardhan Korada††
Cite as: 2024 SCC OnLine Blog Exp 3
On submission that the accused were ‘coaxed’ to accompany ED officials, Punjab and Haryana High Court concluded that the act was not in pursuance of purported summons issued but an unlawful restraint.
It is for violation of Section 18(2) and Section 18(3) of the FERA that would entail action under Section 56 FERA, but the intervening threshold of issuance of show cause notice/opportunity notice and hearing the notice before passing the decision upon such mandatory application of principles of natural justice alone that the action under Section 56 could, at all, have been initiated.
While the applicant’s right to healthcare and medical treatment is a fundamental consideration, it cannot be allowed to overshadow the pressing need to investigate fairly and ensure that due legal processes are followed.
“The summoning of a person repeatedly without probable cause or reasonable ground and only on the ground of suspicion alone is not in accordance with the principles of due causes and fairness”
“The very purpose of the constitutional and statutory protection would be rendered nugatory if the authorities concerned are permitted to merely read out or permit reading of the grounds of arrest, irrespective of their length and detail, and claim due compliance with the constitutional requirement under Article 22(1) and the statutory mandate under Section 19(1) of the PMLA”.
“Since the territorial jurisdiction of the present case is in Chennai only, therefore Chennai being one of the jurisdictional area under the notification issued by the Central Government, which comes under the jurisdiction of the PDSJ, Chennai, naturally the said case has to be tried in the said Court”