Delhi HC dismisses ‘default bail’ plea of co-accused in PMLA case involving AAP leader Satyendar Jain

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has dismissed the pleas of two accused persons who sought "default bail" in a money laundering case, in which senior AAP leader Satyendar Jain is also in jail, claiming the charge sheet filed against them was "incomplete".

The high court, which upheld a trial court’s verdict denying default bail to accused Vaibhav Jain and Ankush Jain, said its order does not prevent their right to seek regular bail on merit.

The case pertains to allegations against former Delhi minister Satyendar Jain of having laundered money through four companies allegedly linked to him. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has claimed Vaibhav Jain and Ankush Jain were business associates of the AAP leader and abetted the commission of the offence.

The court rejected the contention of the accused that the charge sheet filed against them was incomplete, noting that "mere supplementary evidence that is intended to support the main charge sheet, would not make the complaint incomplete” .

“The trial court has, therefore, rightly concluded that the complaint (charge sheet) filed against the petitioners (Vaibhav and Ankush Jain), was complete in the sense of containing all the necessary ingredients for the commission of the offence.

“Any further investigations, which are only supplementary in nature and do not make the complaint incomplete, there being no default in filing the complaint within the statutory period,” Justice Neena Bansal Krishna said in an order passed on Monday and made available on Tuesday.

The high court added, “The default bail under Section 167(2) of CrPC is, therefore, rightly denied to the applicants and both the petitions are hereby dismissed”.

Satyendar Jain was arrested on May 30, 2022, by the ED in the case. Ankush and Vaibhav were arrested on June 30, 2022.

The two accused in the present case had earlier approached the trial court claiming they deserved to be granted default bail as the charge sheet filed against them was incomplete. The trial court last year dismissed their pleas.

The ED had opposed their pleas saying they were not entitled to be released on default bail.

The high court, in its order, said there may be supplementary investigations undertaken, but "the trial court has rightly observed that incidental or supportive investigations may continue by way of FSL report".

It was "to collect such other further details but that in itself would not take away the completeness of the complaint in so much as the contents of the complaint discloses all the ingredients for the commission of offence," the court said.

“Mere supplementary evidence, which is only intended to be filed in support of the main charge sheet, would not make the complaint incomplete,” it held.

The ED had arrested Satyendar Jain in the money laundering case based on a CBI FIR registered against him in 2017 under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

He was granted regular bail by a trial court on September 6, 2019, in the case registered by the CBI.

In 2022, the trial court had taken cognisance of the prosecution complaint (charge sheet) filed by the ED against Satyendar Jain, his wife and eight others, including the four firms, in connection with the money laundering case.