TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (2) TMI 131
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....wn as supporting outward remittances for freight, logistics, and import payments. Since the offences under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471, and 120-B of the Indian Penal Code ["IPC"] are scheduled offences under the PMLA, the Directorate of Enforcement ["ED"] registered an ECIR vide ECIR/DLZO-II/24/202 on 28th March, 2022. 3. Investigation by the respondent agency revealed that several Indian entities fraudulently remitted approximately Rs. 696.69 crore to overseas entities in Singapore and Hong Kong. The remittances were based on forged Form 15CB and Form 15CA certificates and were falsely declared as legitimate business payments. These Indian entities had no genuine business operations and existed only on paper. Their directors and proprietors were fictitious or untraceable, and the incorporation and KYC documents were found to be forged. 4. Further investigation showed that many of these Indian entities shared common addresses, directors, and bank accounts confirming their sham nature. Bank accounts were opened across multiple banks and funded through RTGS, NEFT, and other channels to layer the proceeds of crime. The funds were then siphoned abroad to overseas entities to conc....
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.... that the Session's Court had erred in disregarding material contradictions in the statements of key witnesses including Rahul Kumar, Chitra Pandey, and others. Reliance was placed upon the decisions of the Supreme Court in Prem Prakash v. Union of India2024 SCC OnLine SC 2270, P. Krishan Mohan Reddy v. State of Andhra Pradesh 2025 SCC OnLine SC 1157as well as this Court in Vijay Aggarwal v. Directorate of Enforcement 2023 SCC OnLine Del 3176, in support of the submissions. 9. It was further submitted that there is a complete absence of "proceeds of crime" as defined under Section 2(1)(u) of the PMLA. No property has been derived or obtained by the Applicant as a result of any scheduled offence, nor has any amount been traced to his bank accounts from the alleged remittances. Reliance was placed upon Vijay Madanlal Choudhary v. Union of India 2022 SCC OnLine SC 929, to submit that in the absence of foundational facts, no offence under Sections 3 and 4 of PMLA is made out, and consequently, the twin conditions under Section 45 stand satisfied. 10. It was further submitted that the amounts received by the Applicant from relatives/mother/wife between 2020-2022 were personal and ....
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..... Mr. Gurnani, learned panel counsel for the respondent/ED submitted that the present bail application is liable to be rejected at the threshold as the applicant has failed to satisfy the mandatory twin conditions prescribed under Section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. It was submitted that there exist reasonable grounds for believing that the applicant is guilty of the offence of money laundering and further that he is likely to commit offences while on bail. Reliance is placed on Vijay Madanlal Choudhary (supra), Tarun Kumar v. Assistant Director 2023 SCC OnLine SC 1486, Union of India v. Kanhaiya Prasad 2025 SCC OnLine SC 306 and Satyendar Kumar Jain v. ED 2024 SCC OnLine SC 317 to submit that the rigours of Section 45 are mandatory, constitutionally valid, and apply equally to regular as well as anticipatory bail. 15. It was further submitted that a strong prima facie case is made out against the applicant, who has been arrayed as an accused in the supplementary prosecution complaint. The material on record, including statements recorded under Section 50 of the PMLA, demonstrates the applicant's involvement in the laundering of proceeds of crime. Further....
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....A, the gravity of allegations, and binding precedents, it is submitted that the applicant is not entitled to the discretionary relief of bail. Analysis and Conclusion 21. The Court has considered the rival submissions and perused the material placed on record. At the stage of bail, the Court is not required to conduct a mini-trial, but to assess whether there exist reasonable grounds for believing that the applicant is guilty of the offence and whether he is likely to commit any offence while on bail, as contemplated under Section 45 of the PMLA. These twin conditions, though stringent, are not insurmountable and must be applied on the basis of the material available, tested against settled principles governing personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution. 22. In the present case, the prosecution has primarily relied upon statements of co-accused recorded under Section 50 of the PMLA to attribute the role of a "kingpin" to the applicant. At this stage, the Court prima facie finds merit in the contention of the applicant that such statements, which are contradictory inter se and largely uncorroborated by independent documentary or electronic evidence directly linki....
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.... of the accused person at his trial by reasonable amount of bail. The object of bail is neither punitive nor preventative. Deprivation of liberty must be considered a punishment, unless it is required to ensure that an accused person will stand his trial when called upon. The courts owe more than verbal respect to the principle that punishment begins after conviction, and that every man is deemed to be innocent until duly tried and duly found guilty. 22. From the earliest times, it was appreciated that detention in custody pending completion of trial could be a cause of great hardship. From time to time, necessity demands that some unconvicted persons should be held in custody pending trial to secure their attendance at the trial but in such cases, "necessity" is the operative test. In this country, it would be quite contrary to the concept of personal liberty enshrined in the Constitution that any person should be punished in respect of any matter, upon which, he has not been convicted or that in any circumstances, he should be deprived of his liberty upon only the belief that he will tamper with the witnesses if left at liberty, save in the most extraordinary circumstanc....
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....he facts and circumstances of each case. One of the circumstances to consider the gravity of offences is also the term of sentence i.e., prescribed for the offence, the accused is alleged to have committed. The court has also to take into account the object of the special Act, the gravity of offence and the attending circumstances along with period of sentence. All economic offences cannot be classified into one group as it may involve various activities and may differ from one case to another. Therefore, it is not advisable on the part of the Court to categorize all the offences into one group and deny bail on that basis. It is well settled that if the State or any prosecuting agency including, the court, concerned has no wherewithal to provide or protect the fundamental right of an accused, to have a speedy trial as enshrined under Article 21 of the Constitution, then the State or any other prosecuting agency should not oppose the plea for bail on the ground that the crime committed is serious. Article 21 of the Constitution applies irrespective of the nature of the crime. The aforesaid proposition was quoted with approval by another two-Judge Bench of this Court and it was held ....
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....int and the proceeding is at the stage of scrutiny of documents. No material has been placed on record to show the fate of the application filed by the ED on 27.09.2025 seeking day-to-day hearing even after period of approximately three months has expired. There are 210 witnesses to be examined in the proceeding. There is no likelihood of trial commencing in the near future. The continued incarceration in such circumstances, particularly where the evidence which is primarily documentary in nature, is already in custody of the prosecution, violates the right of the appellant to speedy trial under Article 21 of the Constitution of India." 27. As regards the triple test, the applicant has deep roots in society, has no criminal antecedents, and there is no material on record to suggest any attempt on his part to influence witnesses or tamper with evidence after his arrest, the apprehension of flight risk or reoffending is purely speculative, particularly when stringent conditions can be imposed to secure his presence during trial. The gravity of the offence, though undeniable, cannot by itself be the sole ground to deny bail, especially when the investigation is complete and the tri....