New Delhi, April 28 (IANS) A Delhi court on Tuesday dismissed the interim bail plea of Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) co-founder Vinesh Kumar Chandel, who is in judicial custody in a money laundering probe linked to an alleged coal pilferage case.
Additional Sessions Judge Shefali Barnala Tandon of the Patiala House Courts rejected Chandel’s application seeking temporary release on medical grounds relating to the condition of his 74-year-old mother, who is stated to be suffering from dementia.
Holding that the grounds urged did not meet the threshold of urgency or exceptional humanitarian circumstances required for such relief under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the court said, “In view of the foregoing discussion, this Court is of the considered opinion that the applicant/accused has failed to make out a case for grant of interim bail. The grounds urged, though sympathetic, do not rise to the level of urgency or exceptionality required to justify such relief, particularly in the context of an offence under the PMLA.”
The court order added that interim bail in offences under PMLA cannot be granted as a matter of course and must be founded on “compelling, immediate, and exceptional circumstances”.
Chandel had sought interim bail pending adjudication of his regular bail plea, contending that his mother required his immediate presence as he was her sole caregiver. His counsel submitted that his brother was serving in the Indian Army and was away from home, while his wife was occupied with arranging legal assistance and preparing his defence.
The plea further stated that Chandel’s arrest and continued incarceration had caused severe emotional and medical distress to his mother, allegedly worsening her condition.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED), while verifying the authenticity of the medical documents placed on record, opposed the plea, arguing that the grounds raised were neither exceptional nor substantiated enough to warrant interim bail in a serious economic offence.
Rejecting the plea, the court observed that while it was not insensitive to the medical vulnerability of elderly parents, the material on record did not disclose “any sudden or life-threatening medical emergency necessitating the immediate presence” of the accused.
“The condition of Dementia, as described, is a chronic and progressive ailment, and the documents annexed do not indicate any acute medical crisis of such immediacy that cannot be managed through appropriate medical care and assistance,” the judge said.
The court also recorded that no recent medical documents had been filed to substantiate the plea of urgent care and that there was no material to show that the mother’s needs could not be addressed through hospitalisation, professional care or support from other family members.
It further said that Chandel’s wife and brother were available family members and that no cogent material had been placed on record to demonstrate that alternative caregiving arrangements were not possible.
“Courts have consistently held that interim bail on medical or humanitarian grounds must be based on clear, proximate, and compelling necessity, and not on generalised assertions of hardship,” the order said.
“The plea, therefore, does not meet the threshold of exceptional humanitarian grounds warranting interim bail,” the court held.
Chandel was sent to 14 days’ judicial custody on April 23 after the expiry of ED remand in connection with an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) registered on March 28 on the basis of an FIR lodged by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW).
According to the ED, M/s Indian PAC Consulting Pvt Ltd, through its directors, including Chandel, was allegedly engaged in the generation, concealment and laundering of proceeds of crime through structured financial transactions involving unaccounted cash components, bogus invoices and hawala channels.
The federal anti-money laundering agency has alleged that the company split receipts between formal banking channels and cash payments, including funds purportedly received from political parties, and used unaccounted money for election-related expenditure and influencing public perception.
The ED has also alleged that Rs 13.50 crore was introduced into the company’s books in the guise of unsecured, interest-free loans without commercial justification and that bogus invoices were raised to justify fund inflows.
–IANS
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