Above: The new Rs 2,000 notes which were released after demonetisation. Photo: UNI
Yogesh Mittal, a close associate of advocate Rohit Tandon (who is behind bars, associated with a demonetisation scandal) was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on June 6 for allegedly converting demonetised currency notes into valid currency. Mittal had later applied for bail.
On Tuesday (July 4), Justice Ashutosh Kumar of the Delhi High Court heard the petition, where Mittal’s counsel submitted that the FIR registered against his client was about money laundering under the PMLA Act, post demonetisation.
The court observed that possession of demonetised notes is a serious offence. At this the petitioner said that no recovery (of currency notes) has been made from him. The counsel said: “I will place on record the same.”
The court said: “We need to respond on each and every aspect of the reply made by the ED. Apart from the statement of petitioner, where is the element of laundering the money? Has he lent some money to his wife or some close persons?”
They court told the ED’s counsel that the ED should have come with a copy of the Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR). The court observed that while the ED said the accused “should be kept in custody, when it comes to us to rescue him, we don’t have the case report.”
The court ordered the ED to file an additional document (ECIR) through ASG Sanjay Jain.
The counsel said the ED will be filling additional affidavit in support and would bring on record the material against the petitioner within one week. The petitioner’s counsel will give its reply within one week after that.
The matter was adjourned to July 21.
—India Legal Bureau