Mumbai Special Court Denies Bail to Anil Deshmukh in Money Laundering Case
Opposing his plea, the ED stressed the modus operandi through which Deshmukh had allegedly laundered over Rs 13 cr.
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A special PMLA court on Monday, 14 March, rejected the bail plea of former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh in an alleged money laundering case.
Deshmukh, in his bail plea filed in January, contended that he was a victim of "gross persecution." "Harassment was being meted out to him at the hands of certain unscrupulous vested interests for blatantly malafide considerations," his plea said, according to LiveLaw.
The application also contended that around 100 witnesses had been interrogated by the ED during their investigation, but none of them had claimed to have been influenced by the accused, and therefore, there could not be any chance of him influencing any witness.
Opposing his plea, the ED stressed the modus operandi through which Deshmukh and his family members had allegedly laundered over Rs 13 crore.
As per the agency, the money was routed through shell companies and eventually transferred to the bank account of Shri Sai Shikshan Sanstha, a trust allegedly formed by the Deshmukh family. The ED further alleged that the funds were transferred to various accounts of companies directly and indirectly controlled by Deshmukh's family members, LiveLaw reported.
The case dates back to 20 March 2021, when Singh wrote a letter to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, alleging that Deshmukh had abused his position of power to seek illegal monetary benefits.
The letter had stated that Deshmukh had directed suspended police officer Sachin Vaze and others to collect Rs 100 crore from bars and restaurants over a month.
(With inputs from LiveLaw.)
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