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Ex-Mumbai police chief gets bail in money laundering case
Delhi High Court on Thursday granted bail to former Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjay Pandey in a money laundering case related to alleged illegal phone tapping and snooping of National Stock Exchange (NSE) employees
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Thursday granted bail to former Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjay Pandey in a money laundering case related to alleged illegal phone tapping and snooping of National Stock Exchange (NSE) employees, saying he is prima facie "not guilty" of acquiring or retaining the "proceeds of crime". Justice Jasmeet Singh ordered his release on a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh with two sureties in the like amount subject to certain conditions.
The judge said while tapping phone lines without consent is prima facie a breach of privacy, the scheduled offences under the under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) are not made out and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has "not substantiated" that Pandey "derived or obtained any property" from a criminal activity. "Since none of the ingredients of the scheduled offences viz., Section 72 IT Act, Section 120B r/w 409 and 420 IPC, Section 13(2) read with 13(1)(d) Prevention of Corruption Act are made out, there is no occasion to allege acquisition or retention of 'proceeds of crime', which under Section 2(u) of PMLA is defined to mean proceeds arising out of 'scheduled offences'.
"In view of the above discussion, the Applicant cannot be held to have derived or obtained property as a result of criminal activity relating to or in relation to a scheduled offence," the court said in its 48-page order.
The court also said, on the basis of the material collected and referenced by the ED, it can be concluded that the central agency has not substantiated that Pandey has derived or obtained any property as a result of a scheduled offence or indulged in any activity or process relating to that property. The court observed there was no likelihood of the accused committing an offence under the PMLA if released and noted: "The application is allowed and the applicant is granted bail." "I am of the view that according to sec 45 PMLA, prima facie, there are reasonable grounds to believe that the Applicant is not guilty of the offence and he is not likely to commit any offence while on bail," the court said. The court clarified that at the stage of bail, it was not determining the guilt of the accused but only assessing the matter on broad probabilities.
