The bail application of Congress leader D.K. Shivakumar, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) earlier this month on money laundering charge, was dismissed by a special court on 25th September.
The accused will continue to remain in judicial custody. However, given health concerns raised by his lawyers, the court issued necessary directions to the authorities concerned.
The ED had arrested Mr. Shivakumar, alleging that he was non-cooperative and evasive during questioning.
The money laundering case is based on a charge sheet filed by the Income-Tax Department last year, alleging tax evasion and ‘hawala’ transactions running into crores of rupees.
After the completion of the ED custody, the court sent Mr. Shivakumar to judicial custody. Arguments on his bail plea concluded on September 21.
Making submissions on the ED’s behalf, Additional Solicitor General K.M. Nataraj had alleged the possibility of him influencing witnesses. He said the agency was investigating ill-gotten wealth. The Income Tax Act did not deal with ill-gotten wealth and that its provisions were not meant to regularise tainted property.
Though a person had protection against self-incrimination, the accused, during ED custody, gave irrelevant answers to queries about the properties under scrutiny, Mr. Natraj said.
Countering the agency’s arguments, senior advocate and defence counsel A.M. Singhvi urged the court to decide the bail application not on the merits of the case at this stage, but the principle of Triple Test. He said there was no flight risk and no possibility of tampering with evidence and that the court could also impose necessary conditions on him.
Mr. Singhvi also questioned the ED probe on the basis of the I-T Department’s ’s findings, saying the Income Tax Act was not a scheduled offence under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
