AAP Leader Satyendar Jain Prima Facie Guilty Of Money Laundering, ED Collected Sufficient Materials: Supreme Court
In a significant development, the Supreme Court on Monday (March 18) observed that Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Satyendar Jain, along with his aides Ankush Jain and Vaibhav Jain, are prima facie guilty of the alleged offences of money laundering.
The court’s observation came as it refused to grant bail to Satyendar Jain in a money laundering case, highlighting the failure of the accused to fulfil the twin conditions set out in Section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act for bail.
The case dates back to 2022 when Satyendar Jain was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), revolving around allegations of money laundering through four companies during 2010-12 and 2015-16.
The central agency argued that Jain exercised effective control over the companies involved in the alleged money-laundering racket, despite relinquishing his position as a director. Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi refuted these allegations, alleging a lack of credible links tying Jain to the alleged money laundering activities.
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However, the court concluded that Satyendar Jain was responsible for conceptualising the idea of accommodation entries against cash and was directly involved in the accommodation entries totaling approximately Rs. 4.81 crores.
Furthermore, the court highlighted the assistance provided by Ankush Jain and Vaibhav Jain to Satyendar Jain in making false declarations under the Income Declaration Scheme, 2016. Although these declarations were later deemed ‘void’ by the income tax authorities, the court stated that the appellants could not be permitted to take advantage of their own wrongdoing to mislead the authorities.
In view of these findings, the court denied bail to the accused and directed Satyendar Jain to surrender before the special court.
The right to speedy trial and access to justice was emphasized, with provisions of Section 436A of the Code of Criminal Procedure applying to cases of money laundering under Section 3 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
Jain was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in May 2022 on charges of money laundering under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
