Money laundering case: Court sends Satyendar to ED custody till June 9
Delhi's health minister Satyendar Jain
New Delhi: Delhi's health minister Satyendar Jain was on Tuesday sent to Enforcement Directorate's custody till June 9 in a money laundering case by a court here which noted that his interrogation was required to unearth the alleged larger conspiracy. The ED had on Monday arrested the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader under the criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
Special Judge Geetanjli Goel issued the remand order after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the ED, sought Jain's custodial interrogation for 14 days. He said there was a chequered layer of money and the agency was trying to find out if the accused was laundering somebody else's money and whether there were other potential beneficiaries.
"The money hasn't stopped at Rs 4.81 crore. It is beyond. Some facts we don't have, but the accused is aware," the SG said, adding that the likelihood of tampering with evidence could not be ruled out till the agency ascertained the real trail. So far, Jain has been evasive in his replies to the agency, he alleged.
The ED said the custody was required to find out where eventually the money came from. "This is not a one-time offence. This is of a recurring nature which may still be going on. He (Jain) may be able to throw light during custodial interrogation," he said.
Senior Advocate N Hariharan opposed the ED application, saying the case dated back to 2015 and that the entire ED's allegation was the reproduction of the charge sheet, and that the accused had already been summoned 5-6 times for interrogation by the agency.
He said there was no requirement for custodial interrogation in the case. The judge, however, remanded Jain in ED's custody, noting that his custodial interrogation was required to unearth the larger conspiracy.
The agency had earlier provisionally attached assets worth Rs 4.81 crore of Jain's family and companies "beneficially owned and controlled" by him as part of a money-laundering probe against him.