Money Laundering: SC grants bail to Chhattisgarh businessman

An interim bail has been given by the Supreme Court to a businessman. The Chhattisgarh-based businessman was arrested in connection with a money laundering case involving an illegal levy on coal transportation, noting that he has already undergone incarceration for one year and seven months. A bench made up of Justices Surya Kant and Vishwanathan gave the Enforcement Directorate six weeks to inquire about the investigation's progress and record the new affidavit and pertinent documents. The top court stated that as of right now, the petitioner is not being prosecuted under Section 384 of the Indian Penal Code or any other IPC provision for any predicate offence, which is defined as underlying criminal action that results in illegal gains. The bench mentioned that the petitioner had been in custody for approximately one year and seven months. Additionally, the petitioner is not mentioned as an accused in either the FIR or the charge sheet. The bench added that although it refrains from expressing a final opinion on the matter, it acknowledges that the petitioner has presented a prima facie strong case for being granted interim bail. The panel ordered that the petitioner be released on interim bail as long as he provided bail bonds that satisfied the Special Court in Raipur, Chhattisgarh. Sunil Kumar Agrawal had filed a plea with the highest court, contesting the April 8 ruling of the Chhattisgarh High Court that had denied his bail. Senior advocates Mukul Rohatgi and Vikas Pahwa represented Agrawal in the case. The ED is looking into an alleged scam in which a cartel made up of politicians, businesspeople, bureaucrats, and middlemen allegedly demanded an illegal levy of Rs 25 for each tonne of coal transported in Chhattisgarh. In its second supplemental charge sheet, the ED claimed that IAS officer Ranu Sahu, the district collector for Korba during the scam, helped Suryakant Tiwari and his associates obtain large bribes from coal transporters and District Mineral Fund (DMF) contracts in order to facilitate the collection of illicit levy amounts. The Income Tax Department filed a complaint after conducting raids in June 2022, which is where the money laundering case originated.

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