A Delhi court Friday granted bail to AAP leader and former Delhi minister Satyendar Jain in the money laundering case, stating "delay" in trial and "long incarceration", while also saying the Enforcement Directorate can "no longer be permitted to wish away" precious years of an accused's life.
Jain, who was arrested on the charge of laundering about Rs 4.5 crore money through four companies allegedly linked to him, walked out of the Tihar Jail Friday evening after spending more than 18 months in judicial custody.
Special Judge Vishal Gogne refused the ED's plea while seeking to turn down the bail, saying the relief granted under Article 21 of the Constitution for right to life and personal liberty supersedes stringent twin conditions of section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
Under twin conditions of the PMLA, which is that the accused has to prove in court prima facie innocence and further that he/she would not commit any offense while being on bail.
"The grounds of delay and long incarceration are, in effect, constitutional and plenary twin conditions sourced from Article 21 of the Constitution and therefore superior to the twin conditions under Section 45 PMLA".
"The constitutional twin conditions must necessarily have a mitigating effect on the rigours of statutory twin conditions under stringent legislations including PMLA when liberty is the core value under consideration," the judge said.
He further noted that judgments in a bail order by the Supreme Court in an alleged excise scam money laundering case involving AAP leader Manish Sisodia, and other such subsequent cases, have mandated the reading of delay and long periods of incarceration into the exercise of meeting the twin conditions under Section 45 PMLA.
According to the judge, the CBI had not arrested Jain in the predicate office related case; rather, it was the ED, which lodged the case based on a CBI FIR, that "lent a twist to the tale by arresting him in the allegations pertaining to Section 4 (money laundering) PMLA".
"The ED, as an agency bound by the rule of law and the settled principles governing liberty in the context of bail, cannot be allowed to wish away precious years of an accused's life by simple pleading that it has the prerogative to arrest," the judge said.
He stated that an ordinary CBI would never arrest such an accused but the arrest by ED in the very case does create an awkward and unreasonable scenario.
An accused may not be either a flight risk or a threat or influence upon evidence or witnesses in the CBI case, but he is condemned to indefinite imprisonment by the operation of the twin conditions under section 45 of the PMLA, said the judge.
Many investigations by the CBI and the ED did have divergence to appear as far as the arrest of the accused is concerned, the judge added.
"The court would not like to be remiss to also point out that it is effectively the ED, under the aegis of the PMLA, which assumes to itself the authority to declare a person's loss of liberty simply by arresting him under the said Act. It is a well-settled principle of interpretation of statutes that undesirable or bizarre results should be avoided.".
"It is certainly an unnatural and unreasonable outcome for Satyender Jain to languish in custody for over 18 months only by operation of Section 45 when the CBI did not even arrest him in the predicate offence," the judge said. The judge, who also issued a release warrant for Jain, granted the relief on a personal bond of Rs 50,000 with one surety of like amount.
Additional orders the court made on Jain include cooperation with the investigation and refrainment from attempt to influence or harass the probe, besides appearing before the investigating officer and the court whenever required.
"Accused will not contact any witness, and will not travel outside India without court's prior permission," the judge said.
The very moment the order was pronounced by the judge, Jain's wife Poonam and daughter Shreya present in the courtroom, broke down.
Later speaking to mediapersons, Shreya said Diwali has arrived early for the family.
"We always knew this would happen and it was only a matter of time. We are glad that the court gave us justice. Diwali is approaching and we think it has come early for us this year, and we are happy and enthusiastic for him, she said.".
Poonam said she has kept her hopes alive. "It was a trying time for us, but I always had faith because he has never done anything wrong in his life. We have waited long." Jain was released from the Tihar Jail hours after being granted the bail. Out of the Tihar Jail, he said he "will continue our fight against injustice and work for the common man."
There is the ED case which bases its roots from an FIR lodged against Jain by the CBI back in 2017 under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
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