Latest news with #Section45
India Gazette
19-05-2025
- India Gazette
Delhi HC hears Leena Maria Paul's bail plea in money laundering case
New Delhi [India], May 19 (ANI): The Delhi High Court heard arguments on behalf of Sukesh Chandrasekhar's wife Leena Maria Paul in a money laundering case on Monday. She has sought bail on the grounds of the period of custody, parity, and provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) related to women accused. The actor has been in custody for the last three years and seven months. A single bench of justice Shalinder Kaur is dealing with Leena Maria Paul's bail application, which was filed last year. The court has listed the matter for hearing the prosecution's arguments on July 2. Advocate Anant Malik, along with John Paul Edison, appeared for the petitioner, Leena. He argued that despite being in custody for around three years and seven months, charges have not been framed against her yet. At the same time, other co-accused were granted bail by the High Court and the trial court. He further argued that the accused Jacqueline Fernandez was not arrested during the investigation. She was granted bail on the appearance on the summons issued to her It was also argued that the twin condition under Section 45 of PMLA also has a provision related to the woman accused. It was submitted that on December 14, 2021, a complaint was filed against the petitioner and others, 178 witnesses. The matter is still at the stage of arguements on charges on behalf of the accused persons. Accused Pradeep Ramdani, Avtar Singh Kochar, Pinki Irani,and Jacqueline Fernandez are on bail, advocate Malik argued. Petitioner's role is similar to that of Fernandez, he added. Her last bail application was rejected on May 19, 2023 at which time arguments on the charge was still going on. Still arguments on charges are going on behalf of the accused and nothing had changed. He further submitted that Avtar Singh Kochar was granted bail on grounds of delay. While granting the bail, the Supreme Court's judgment in the Manish Sisodia case was also mentioned. A woman is entitled to special treatment while considering the bail of a woman under PMLA, the counsel said. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has opposed the bail plea by submitting that section 45 (2) is not applicable to a woman accused. The Supreme Court has already decided what is to be considered, the ED said. The twin conditions of Section 45 are in addition to the provision of 439 CrPC. Besides, the conduct of the accused is also to be looked into while considering the bail plea. (ANI)
Hindustan Times
03-05-2025
- Hindustan Times
HC paves Iqbal Kaskar's release from jail, grants him bail in 2017 extortion case
MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court on Friday granted bail to Iqbal Kaskar, brother of fugitive underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, in a money laundering case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The case stemmed from a 2017 extortion complaint, and the High Court's order effectively clears the path for Kaskar's release, as it was the last pending matter keeping him behind bars. A special MCOCA court had acquitted Kaskar on April 26 in the original extortion case, which formed the predicate offence for the ED's probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The extortion complaint had alleged that in 2017, Kaskar and his associates extorted ₹30 lakh in cash and a flat worth ₹60 lakh in the Neopolis building in Thane from local builder Suresh Jain. Jain, who ran Darshan Enterprises and Sai Uma Corporation, had signed a development agreement in 2013 with Bharati Bhosale and others to construct a housing project on their Waghbil land in Thane. According to advocate Tabish Mooman, who appeared for Kaskar, Jain allegedly failed to compensate Bhosale as promised—either in cash or through a flat. Following the dispute, Bhosale's son and two of Kaskar's alleged aides—Israr and Mumtaz—approached Jain seeking compensation. Jain later alleged that Kaskar personally called him, demanded money and four flats, and issued threats to his life. Jain filed an FIR at the Kasarvadavali police station, claiming that Kaskar's associates made repeated visits and continued to pressurise him. Out of fear, he said, he registered flats in the names of Bhosale and Shaikh, and transferred ₹90 lakh to Shaikh in instalments. Based on the FIR, the ED initiated a money laundering investigation on September 26, 2017, and filed a chargesheet in 2022. Kaskar was arrested on February 18 that year. In June 2023, the ED sought transfer of the MCOCA trial to the Mumbai sessions court, where the money laundering case was being heard. The Thane special court allowed the transfer. Citing the slow pace of trial, Mooman later filed a bail application, noting that no witnesses had been examined in court so far. He argued that since the alleged laundering amount was below ₹1 crore, the offence was bailable under Section 45 of the PMLA. However, the special court rejected the plea on June 26, 2024. Kaskar then moved the Bombay High Court, maintaining he was falsely implicated and had already spent three years in custody for an offence carrying a minimum sentence of three years. His petition also contended that continued incarceration violated his fundamental rights under Article 21 of the Constitution. Mooman further argued that the ED had failed to produce any evidence linking Kaskar to the extorted cash or flats, nor was there any proof connecting him to the alleged conspiracy. Taking note of these arguments, Justice Milind Jadhav observed that the prosecution had failed to establish Kaskar's guilt in the MCOCA trial, and accordingly, granted him bail. 'When the prosecution fails to prove the accused's guilt in the predicate offence, the accused should be granted bail in the PMLA offence,' the court ruled.
