Mumbai court nixes Rs 1,478cr money laundering case accused Ritesh Jain's plea for family holiday abroad

Time of India

02-07-2025

Mumbai: Observing that there is possibility of the accused absconding and hampering investigations, a special PMLA court has rejected the plea of businessman Ritesh Jain, an accused in a Rs 1,478-crore money laundering case related to Rajeshwar Exports Pvt Ltd, to travel to the UK and the UAE for a family holiday.
While Jain submitted that his family had endured significant mental turmoil due to the cases against him and his companies, and the trip was intended to "weed out negativity and instill enthusiasm and positivity" in their lives following the recent death of his father, the judge noted that there were no urgent and compelling reasons.
Jain had sought permission to travel to the UK from July 1-8 and to the UAE from July 8-15 and requested abeyance of any look out circular against him.
His lawyers submitted that Jain was innocent and had been falsely implicated. They also submitted that the right to travel abroad is a fundamental right under Article 21 of the Constitution of India.
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Opposing the application,
Enforcement Directorate
(ED) said that Jain, along with others, conspired to entice individuals into opening bank accounts for companies like Macquire Multitrade Pvt Ltd, Kalpana Trading Company, and Unique Trading Company, which were allegedly used for illegal transactions, cheating individuals for personal gain and causing loss to govt.
The investigations allegedly revealed that Jain and his associates incorporated "paper companies or entities" such as Unique Trading and Macquire Multitrade, transferring funds from these to Rajeshwar Exports. Outward remittances were made under the guise of importing jewellery and diamonds, purportedly to park tainted funds abroad.
ED also informed the court that Jain is an accused in another case related to Auro Gold Jewellery Pvt Ltd and is considered the "kingpin" of a setup designed to park funds outside the country by establishing a web of entities with dummy directors.
An LOC was issued against him on Jan 6, 2017, as he is considered a prime conspirator. ED submitted that Jain has repeatedly failed to appear despite multiple summons, evading the process of law.
The court noted that while the right to travel abroad is a fundamental right, it is subject to restrictions during ongoing criminal investigations. Considering Jain's "past conduct" and the existing LOC, the court concluded there was a strong possibility of him absconding if permitted to travel abroad, which would hamper the investigation.