The Supreme Court on Tuesday made permanent, the interim medical bail granted earlier to former Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case.
The Bench of Justice Bela M Trivedi and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma
observed that the medical bail granted to Malik would remain valid till the disposal of his regular bail petition filed before the Bombay High Court.
The counsel appearing for Malik contended that he was suffering from various ailments.
Appearing for ED, Additional Solicitor General SV Raju did not oppose the petition and said that the interim medical bail may be made permanent.
The national agency arrested Malik in February 2022 in a case allegedly linked to the activities of fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim and his associates.
Malik had earlier moved the High Court, seeking relief on the grounds that he was suffering from a chronic kidney disease, apart from various other ailments. He further sought bail on merit.
The ED’s case is based on an FIR filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) against Ibrahim, a designated global terrorist and a key accused in the 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts, and his associates under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.