Breaking: CBI Court dismisses bail plea by DK Shivakumar in money laundering case

The Special CBI Court at Rouse Avenue Court Complex today dismissed the bail plea filed by Congress leader DK Shivakumar bail plea in the money laundering case he has been implicated in..The order was pronounced by CBI Judge Ajay Kumar Kuhar..The Court refused to bail to DK Shivakumar on the ground that he was not entitled to bail at this stage of the investigation..It said,.“The investigation in the present case is still at the initial stage. In the course of arguments, the ED has shown certain documents like the list of 317 bank accounts and other documents of properties, etc. which show that investigation is still at the crucial stage of examining documents and their nexus with the assets of the applicant/accused. The applicant/accused, as argued, is an influential person, therefore, the apprehension that he may influence the witnesses or have some tampering with documents, cannot be treated as unfounded. The Investigating Agency must have a full, fair and free chance to investigate in depth so that it can reach to a logical solution. The release of the applicant at such a crucial stage of investigation may hamper the investigation.”.While rejecting plea for bail on the medical grounds, the Court stated,.“Medical ground by itself considering the nature of the offence and the stage of investigation, is not considered a justified ground for bail.” .In order to address health concerns raised by Shivakumar, the Court has directed the Jail Superintendent, Tihar Jail to “ensure that all medical needs of the applicant (Shivakumar) are attended to immediately“. If needed, Shivakumar may also be taken to RML Hospital, Safdarjung Hospital or AIIMS, the Court said..Shivakumar was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on September 3 after undergoing four days of interrogation in relation to the case. The ED had cited Shivakumar’s non-cooperation during the questioning as the reason for his arrest..After the end of the maximum period of police custody, DK Shivakumar was sent to 14-day judicial custody on September 17..The ED’s case against DK Shivakumar stems from an income tax raid conducted in 2017. A money laundering case was registered against him pursuant to an ECIR on the basis of a complaint filed by the Income Tax authorities for offences punishable under Section 276C(1), 277 and 278 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 read with Section 193, 199 and 120B of the Indian Penal Code, 1860..During the course of arguments, the ED argued that the probe under Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) was operating independently of the offences committed under the IT Act in order to ascertain the source of “tainted” money..It was contended that paying income tax returns on ‘tainted money’ would not absolve the accused of liability under PMLA..The ED accused Shivakumar was amassing wealth and property disproportionate to his income on record as an agriculturalist..DK Shivakumar, on the hand, argued that investigation under PMLA could not be sustained in the absence of a scheduled offence..Shivakumar argued that the predicate offence, i.e. Section 276C(1), 277 and 278 IT Act, was not a scheduled offence for the purpose of PMLA and mere insertion of Section 120B could not grant jurisdiction to the ED to initiate a probe under the PMLA..It was further argued that Shivakumar’s income and property, as well the income and property of his family members was a matter of record owing to the affidavits filed by him before the Election Commission for various Assembly elections in Karnataka. Hence, there was no possibility of any wealth or asset being hidden or unaccounted for..After hearing the parties at length for more than two days, the CBI court had reserved its order in the bail plea on September 21..ED was represented by Additional Solicitor General KM Nataraj..DK Shivakumar was represented by Senior Advocates Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Mukul Rohatgi and Dayan Krishnan..Read the Order: