On November 17, Thursday, the Delhi Rouse Avenue Court denied bail to AAP minister Satyendar Jain in connection with the money laundering case being probed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The bench of special judge Vikas Dhull also rejected the bail of Vaibhav and Ankush Jain, co-accused in the case. Satyendar Jain was sent to judicial custody on June 13 on completion of his ED custody in connection with a money laundering case filed against him by CBI in August 2017.
[BREAKING] Delhi Court Denies Bail To AAP Minister Satyendra Jain In PMLA Case @SukritiMishra12 reports#PMLA #MoneyLaundering #satyendrajainhttps://t.co/cv6E7JAexP
— LawBeat (@LawBeatInd) November 17, 2022
Special judge Vikas Dhull was supposed to issue the order yesterday. However, the matter was postponed for today since the order was not ready.
The AAP leader had urged the court to grant him bail, claiming that keeping him in detention would serve no purpose any longer. The Delhi Court’s Special Judge Vikas Dhull, however, reserved his order on the bail plea on November 17.
Notably, prior to this, the Delhi Court’s Special Judge Geetanjali Goel had also reserved her order on Jain’s bail plea on June 14. That time, AAP leader Satyendar Jain’s counsel, senior advocate N Hariharan had stated before the Delhi court that the Delhi minister has ‘sleep apnea’ and that he should be granted bail on medical grounds.
Jain’s counsel also told the court that he has cooperated with the agency at every stage and no more custody is required. He submitted that the AAP leader meets the triple test for bail as he is not a flight risk and also the evidence is mostly documentary in nature and cannot be tampered with. Jain’s counsel also told the court that witnesses have never raised the allegation of threat.
Interestingly, prior to this, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had notified the trial court on Tuesday, June 14, that during questioning, Delhi minister and AAP leader Satyendar Jain claimed that he lost his memory due to the effects of Covid.
AAP leader Satyendar Jain charged with money laundering
On May 30, the ED arrested Satyendar Jain under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. On May 31, the trial court remanded him to the custody of ED. The agency raided the residence and other places associated with Satyendar Jain on June 6 and 7. Following the raid, the agency confiscated Rs. 2.85 crores in cash and 133 gold coins weighing 1.80 kg in total.
The Health Minister of Aam Aadmi Party’s Delhi government was charged with money laundering in August 2017 by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Based on the FIR made by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the ED initiated a criminal case against Jain, alleging that he could not explain the source of income received by four firms in which he was a stakeholder. From 2010 to 2014, the firms allegedly laundered Rs 16.39 crores in cash.
The Home Ministry authorised the prosecution of Delhi minister Satyendar Jain in these matters, including disproportionate assets and money laundering, in November 2019. Under the PMLA, 2002, the Enforcement Directorate temporarily attached immovable assets worth Rs. 4.81 crores owned by Akinchan Developers Pvt. Ltd, Indo Metal Impex Pvt Ltd, and others in April of this year. This step was taken in connection with the case filed against AAP minister Satyendar Jain, his wife Poonam Jain, and others for disproportionate assets and money laundering.
