In a significant development, Supreme Court Justice Sanjiv Khanna remarked on Wednesday that Section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act ( PMLA ) does not prevent courts from granting bail to individuals facing prolonged incarceration and trial delays.
Section 45 of the PMLA specifies that bail can be considered for a money laundering accused if two conditions are met: there should be prima facie satisfaction that the accused didn’t commit the offense and that they are unlikely to commit any offense while on bail.
Justice Khanna emphasized that the right to bail due to prolonged incarceration stems from Article 21 of the Constitution and isn’t negated by Section 45. He referred to the precedent set in the Manish Sisodia case, where bail was permitted in cases of trial delays.
During a hearing involving Prem Prakash, purportedly an associate of Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren in a money laundering case, Justice Khanna noted the accused’s 18 months in custody. He stated, “That Constitutional right is not taken away by Section 45. It is very clear.”
Additional Solicitor General SV Raju argued based on Section 436A of the Criminal Procedure Code ( CrPC ), suggesting that an undertrial must serve at least 50% of the maximum sentence to seek bail due to delays. However, Justice Khanna disagreed, clarifying that Section 436A is an enabling provision, not a restrictive one.
Despite initial inclination to grant interim bail, the bench adjourned the hearing for a month at ASG’s request to monitor trial progress closely. The Trial Court was instructed to expedite the trial, ideally on a daily basis.
During the proceedings, the bench outlined that PMLA can’t be invoked if criminal conspiracy ( under Section 120B of the Indian Penal Code ) isn’t linked to a scheduled offense, citing a recent Supreme Court judgment. ASG countered, stating that PMLA can be invoked if the complaint outlines predicate offenses, irrespective of the specific sections mentioned.
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