The Supreme Court on Wednesday reserved orders on the former Delhi minister Satyendar Kumar Jain’s plea for bail in an alleged money laundering case registered by the Directorate of Enforcement under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
A bench of Justice Bela M Trivedi and Justice Pankaj Mithal reserved the order on the conclusion of arguments by the Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju for the Enforcement
Directorate and Abhishek Manu Singhvi for Satyendar Jain.
Meeting the arguments advanced by the Enforcement Directorate, Singhvi said that Jain has been incarcerated for a year and the probe agency was trying to convert an income tax case to a money laundering matter.
Senior advocate Singhvi urged the bench to grant bail to Jain as former Delhi minister was not a flight risk. He said that this was a matter of life and liberty of the Jain.
Opposing the bail plea of the former Delhi minister Jain, the ED had told the court that whenever he wants to be out of jail, he moves bail on medical ground and, stays in hospital. Whenever there is an argument on the bail in the court, he falls down, which is a strange coincidence. However, Singhvi described ED’s submission as baseless.
The hearing in the Satyendar Jain’s case was not without its share of twists and turns. Initially the matter was heard by a bench of Justice A.S. Bopanna and Justice Bela M. Trivedi and was treated as part- heard. However, when it was listed before a bench headed by Justice Bela M. Trivedi with a different combination, senior advocate Singhvi took objection to it stating that being a part heard matter, it can only be listed before a bench of Justice Bopanna and Justice Trivedi.
When the issue was mentioned before the CJI court, the Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud clarified that matter has been listed before a bench headed by Justice Trivedi with a different combination because Justice Bopanna, for medical reasons, has in a communication to the court registry ,requested to treat all the part-heard matters that were being heard by a bench presided over by him as de-heard or released.
At present Satyendar Jain is on interim bail on medical grounds.
On May 26, 2023, the Supreme Court had granted him six weeks interim bail on medical grounds. On July 10, the court extended the interim bail by two weeks. Since then, he continues to be on interim basil on medical grounds.