PMLA bail under amended twin conditions requires hearing the prosecutor and satisfaction that the accused is not guilty.

Amended Section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act permits bail only when the Public Prosecutor is heard and the court is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds to believe the accused is not guilty and is not likely to commit an offence while on bail. On the material collected in investigation, including audit findings and witness statements, the court found prima facie links to alleged laundering activity and held that those twin conditions were not met. Bail was therefore refused, and the earlier constitutional challenge did not displace the statutory restrictions on release.

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Issues: Whether the petitioner was entitled to bail under Section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 despite the material collected in investigation and the amended twin conditions governing release on bail.

Analysis: The petition arose from allegations of diversion and siphoning of loan funds through benami entities and false transactions, supported by investigation material including audit findings and witness statements. The Court held that the record disclosed prima facie material connecting the petitioner with the alleged laundering activity and that the first statutory condition under Section 45 had been satisfied because the Public Prosecutor had been heard and had opposed bail. On the second condition, the Court held that there were no reasonable grounds to believe that the petitioner was not guilty of the offence, and that such a satisfaction could not be recorded at the bail stage on the available material. The Court accepted the applicability of the amended Section 45 and declined to treat the earlier constitutional challenge as relieving the petitioner from the statutory restrictions on bail.

Conclusion: The petitioner was not entitled to bail, as the twin conditions under Section 45 were not satisfied.

Ratio Decidendi: Where the amended Section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 applies, bail can be granted only if the Public Prosecutor is heard and the Court is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds to believe the accused is not guilty and is not likely to commit an offence while on bail.

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