Arrest by extreme use of power: Special PMLA Court grants bail to Sanjay and Pravin Raut [Read Order]

The Special Court constituted under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002 granted bail to Shiv Sena(Member of Parliament) MP, Sanjay Raut over three months after his arrest in connection with the Patra Chawl redevelopment project in the northern suburbs of Mumbai.

The case pertains to Patra Chawl in the Goregaon area of Mumbai. It is a plot of land belonging to the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA). There is a scam of about Rupees Thousand thirty- four crores.

It is alleged that a real estate businessman named Pravin Raut, also co-accused in the case cheated people living in Patra Chawl. A construction company was entrusted with constructing three thousand flats on this plot. Of these, six hundred and seventy-two flats were to be given to those living here. The rest were to be given to MHADA, but in 2011, parts of this big plot were sold to other builders. Till now, the original residents of the chawl have not received the flats.

A Bench consisting of MG Deshpande, held that there was no predicate offence which enable the ED to register an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) and that there are no proceeds of crime (POC) established as required under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.

“Prima ­facie there is absolutely nothing to show that whatever (money) received by Sanjay Rautis POC. In the case of Pravin Raut’s arrest, the court said that it was at best a civil matter while the arrest of MP had been arrested for no reason. The court then went on to term their arrest illegal.

“It appears that ED knows only Sections 19 and 45 of the PMLA, but forgets that there is a provision for trial of an offence under PML Act as per Section 44 thereof. It is unfortunate that even this court is forgetting that evidence has to be recorded, trials have to be conducted and judgments are to be delivered even in the PMLA special cases” the Court said.

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