New Delhi:

Former Delhi minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Satyendar Jain has been granted bail by a local court in a money laundering case. Mr Jain was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) over two years ago.

The Supreme Court had granted him interim bail in May 2023 on medical grounds. He returned to Delhi’s Tihar jail after the Supreme Court denied his request for regular bail in March this year.

“Considering the delay in trial and long incarceration of 18 months, and the fact that the trail will take a long time to start, let alone conclude, the accused is favourably suited for the relief,” special judge Vishal Gogne said, according to news agency PTI.

Mr Jain is the third AAP leader who has been granted bail in different cases in recent times.

Former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was granted bail last month, while his former deputy Manish Sisodia was granted bail in August; both were accused of money laundering in framing a new liquor policy for the national capital.

The AAP leaders have been alleging that the Centre used the investigative agencies against them for political hit jobs ahead of electoral battles. The Centre has refuted the allegations at every turn.

The ED case against Mr Jain is based on a first information report (FIR) filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation in 2017 over alleged money laundering using companies linked to him.

“Satyamev Jayate. Long live the Constitution… Satyendar Jain was kept in jail for such a long time by making false and baseless allegations. His house was raided four times. Nothing was found, yet he was kept in jail… Thanks to the judiciary for supporting truth and justice,” Mr Sisodia said in a post on X today.

“Welcome back Satyendar,” Mr Kejriwal said.

Mr Jain’s lawyer told the court no purpose would be served by keeping him in custody further. The ED opposed his bail application on the suspicion that the former minister may influence witnesses.

New Delhi:

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday filed a reply to bail plea of former Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain in a money laundering case.

Special CBI judge Rakesh Syal granted time to counsel for Jain to argue the matter and listed the matter on October 5 along with the main case.

Advocate Vivek Jain appeared for Satyendar Jain and informed the court that the reply has been received an hour ago.

Mr Jain was arrested in May 2022 by the ED in a money laundering case.

It is stated that Supreme court has said that accused can’t be incarcerated for indefinite time during pendency of trial.

His default bail plea is pending before Delhi High Court.

His earlier bail application, interim bail applications were dismissed by the trial court.

However, he was granted Interim bail by the Supreme Court on health grounds.

Enforcement Directorate (ED) had arrested him on May 30, 2022. He was sent to judicial custody after interrogation by the ED.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has given approval for a CBI probe against AAP leader and former Delhi prisons minister Satyendar Jain in a matter under the Prevention of Corruption Act, official sources said on Friday.

Jain, who is behind bars in connection with a money laundering case, was accused of extorting Rs 10 crore from an inmate, Sukesh Chandrashekhar, for providing him protection in the jail, they said.

Reacting to the development, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar alleged, “The vindictive and vendetta-filled politics of BJP has now reached a new low that a notorious conman’s word is believed and accepted as the gospel truth against a person who gave the world Delhi’s famous Mohalla Clinic concept.”

Jain held several important portfolios in the Arvind Kejriwal government including Health, before his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in May 2022.

Apart from Jain, former director general of Tihar prisons Sandeep Goel and some other staff members were charged with demanding and extorting “protection money” from high-profile inmates in Delhi jails.

The ministry on March 22 approved the CBI inquiry against Jain after which Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena forwarded the file to the chief secretary for further appropriate action, an official confirmed.

A complaint was filed by Chandrashekhar after which the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had begun inquiring into the matter and sought sanction from the competent authority to prosecute the former minister under the Prevention of Corruption Act, he said.

Chandrashekhar, lodged in Tihar jail in a money laundering case, alleged in his complaint that “Jain had extorted Rs 10 crore from him in tranches during 2018-21, either personally or through his accomplices, as protection money so as to help him ‘live peacefully and comfortably’ in different jails of Delhi,” he said.

It was also alleged that some jail officials had allegedly extorted Rs 12.50 crore from him in instalments during 2019-22, he stated.

Kakkar said the Delhi LG was responsible for law and order in the national capital and added the day is not far when the BJP will face “grave consequences” for its actions, both electorally and legally.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Former Delhi health minister and AAP leader Satyendar Jain returned to Tihar Jail on Monday, hours after the Supreme Court dismissed his regular bail plea in a money laundering case, officials said.

“Jain arrived at Tihar jail in the evening. He was taken to jail number 7 after the formalities of lodging him in the prison were completed,” a jail official said.

The 69-year-old was medically examined before being sent to a separate cell in the prison, officials said.

Donning a green colour T-shirt and a back pain belt, Jain left his Saraswati Vihar residence in northwest Delhi around 5.45 pm to surrender at the jail.

Before leaving his house, he hugged his wife and other family members. He was accompanied by his wife and a relative in a car. Jain has two daughters. The other relatives came in another car.

The top court rejected an oral request by Jain’s counsel to allow him to surrender in a week’s time. The SC had on January 17 reserved its verdict on his regular bail plea.

Jain was out on interim bail granted to him by the top court on May 26, 2023 on medical grounds, after he fell in Tihar Jail’s bathroom. The bail got extended from time to time. In June last year, he also underwent a spinal operation.

Jain had moved the apex court challenging the April 6, 2023 order of the Delhi High Court dismissing his regular bail application in the case.

The ED had arrested the AAP leader on May 30, 2022 on the charge of laundering money through four companies allegedly linked to him.

It had arrested Jain on the basis of a CBI FIR registered against him in 2017 under the Prevention of Corruption Act. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Former Delhi health minister and AAP leader Satyendar Jain returned to Tihar Jail on Monday, hours after the Supreme Court dismissed his regular bail plea in a money laundering case.

“Jain arrived at Tihar jail in the evening. The formal procedure of lodging him in the prison is on,” a jail official said.

Mr Jain left his Saraswati Vihar residence in northwest Delhi around 6 pm to surrender at the jail. The top court rejected an oral request by Jain’s counsel to allow him to surrender in a week’s time.

The SC had on January 17 reserved its verdict on his regular bail plea.

The top court had granted interim bail to Jain on May 26, 2023, on medical grounds, and it was extended from time to time.

Mr Jain has moved the Supreme Court challenging the April 6, 2023 order of the Delhi High Court dismissing his regular bail application in the case.

The ED had arrested the AAP leader on May 30, 2022, on the charge of laundering money through four companies allegedly linked to him.

It had arrested Jain on the basis of a CBI FIR registered against him in 2017 under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

The Supreme Court on Monday extended interim bail granted to senior Aam Aadmi Party leader and former Delhi minister Satyendar Jain on medical grounds till October 18 in an alleged money laundering case. The matter was listed before a bench of Justice AS Bopanna and Bela M Trivedi, who listed the matter for further hearing on October 18.

“List the matter on October 18 at 3 pm as the matter cannot be taken up for consideration today,” the court said.

“In the meanwhile, the interim bail, granted earlier, is extended till the next date of hearing i.e. October 18, 2023,” the court added.

Mr Jain has undergone surgery on July 21. The interim bail given to Mr Jain on medical grounds has been extended from time to time.

On May 26, the Supreme Court granted interim bail to Satyendar Jain for six weeks in the money laundering case but imposed various conditions including that he should not talk to the media or leave Delhi without permission.

The Supreme Court had also given Mr Jain to choose any hospital of his choice for his medical treatment. The Supreme Court had made it clear that interim bail is considered in medical conditions.

The AAP leader’s lawyer had told the Supreme Court that he had lost 35 kg and turned into a skeleton due to this.

Satyendar Jain has moved the Supreme Court challenging the Delhi High Court order dismissing his bail plea in the money laundering case against him.

On April 6, the Delhi High Court dismissed the bail plea of Mr Jain, stating that the applicant is an influential person and has the potential of tampering with evidence.

The HC had kept the order reserved on March 21 after the conclusion of the submissions made by the defence and prosecution sides after multiple hearings. During arguments in the High Court, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) SV Raju appeared for the Enforcement Directorate contented that money laundering is crystal clear against Mr Jain and other co-accused.

In his bail plea, Mr Jain stated, “I appeared before ED on 7 occasions. I have cooperated and participated in the investigation.”

On November 17, 2022, the trial court dismissed the bail petition of Satyendar Jain. He was arrested on May 30, 2022, under sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) by the Enforcement Directorate and is presently in Judicial Custody in the case.

The ED case is based on a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) complaint registered on the allegation that Satyender Jain had acquired movable properties in the name of various persons from February 14, 2015, to May 31, 2017, which he could not satisfactorily account for.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Aam Aadmi Party leader Sanjay Singh was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate today in connection with the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case. He is the third AAP leader to be arrested by a central agency.

Before him, Manish Sisodia was arrested earlier this year and Satyendar Jain was arrested last year.

In April, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was also questioned for nearly nine hours by the CBI in the liquor policy case. He was questioned as a witness in the case which investogators said involved corruption in framing the policy to benefit a liquor lobby. He hasn’t been summoned for further questioning since then.

Earlier in the day, the Enforcement Directorate raided Mr Singh’s home. The ED had earlier questioned members of the staff and those linked to the 51-year-old Rajya Sabha MP.

Coming out in support of his party MP,  Arvind Kejriwal said that nothing will be found at his residence, adding that all agencies like the Enforcement Directorate or ED and CBI will get active as the 2024 elections are coming.

Manish Sisodia

The CBI on February 26 arrested Manish Sisodia, then the deputy chief minister of Delhi, for alleged corruption in the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22. He has been in custody since then.

Soon after, on February 28, he resigned from the Delhi cabinet on February 28.

Mr Sisodia held the excise portfolio among the many that he handled as the deputy chief minister.

The ED arrested him in a money laundering case stemming from the CBI FIR on March 9 after questioning him in Tihar Jail.

According to the federal investigative agencies, irregularities were committed while modifying the excise policy and undue favours were extended to licence holders.

The Delhi government implemented the policy on November 17, 2021, but scrapped it at the end of September 2022 amid allegations of corruption.

Satyendar Jain

Former Delhi minister Satyendar Jain was arrested in May last year in a money laundering case.

The ED had arrested the AAP leader on the charge of laundering money through four companies allegedly linked to him.

The case is based on a CBI complaint registered on the allegation that Satyendar Jain had acquired movable properties in the name of various persons from February 14, 2015, to May 31, 2017, which he could not satisfactorily account for.

Mr Jain is currently out on bail on medical grounds. The Supreme Court on Monday extended further interim bail granted to him till October 8.

The 59-year-old had a spinal surgery on July 21.

The Supreme Court while granting interim bail to Mr Jain on May 26, had said a citizen has a right to receive treatment of his choice.

The top court had also given Mr Jain to choose any hospital of his choice for his medical treatment.