India News | HC Seeks ED Stand on Bail Plea by Sukesh Chandrashekhar's Aid in Money Laundering Case

New Delhi, Jan 19 (PTI) The Delhi High Court on Wednesday sought a response from the Enforcement Directorate on the bail application by an associate of alleged conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar in a money laundering case.

Justice Mukta Gupta issued notice on the plea by Pinki Irani and granted two weeks to the agency to file its status report.

Also Read | 5G Internet Scare: Air India Cancels 8 US Flights; DGCA Working to Overcome Situation.

Lawyer Yoginder Handoo, representing Irani, contended that his client was brought from Mumbai to Delhi on November 25 and was shown to be arrested only on December 9.

He alleged that in the meantime, she was kept in a hotel room here with “guards” outside her room.

Also Read | Uttar Pradesh Assembly Elections 2022: BJP to Jointly Contest 403 Seats with Apna Dal, Nishad Party.

The trial court had rejected the Irani's bail plea in the Rs 200-crore money laundering case on January 11, the lawyer informed.

The probe agency had earlier arrested Chandrashekhar, his actor wife Leena Maria Paul, and two associates in the case.

It had also recorded the statement of actor Jacqueline Fernandez in the matter.

In the bail petition, Irani has submitted that she has been roped in a “false and frivolous case” and the allegation of violation of provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering case against her is misconceived.

Her plea claimed that she admittedly has nothing to do with the alleged activity of Chandrasekhar.

She claimed she is a victim and Chandrasekhar exploited her for reaching and delivering gifts to Jacqueline Fernandez and was working in ignorance of the fact that wealth generated by him is as a result of extortion, the scheduled offence.

Chandrashekhar is accused of cheating some rich people, including former Fortis Healthcare promoter Shivinder Mohan Singh's wife Aditi Singh.

It is alleged that Chandrashekhar, while being lodged in the Rohini jail here, allegedly ran an extortion racket using phone spoofing technology.

Apart from the couple, the ED had also arrested two co-accused, Pradeep Ramnani, and Deepak Ramnani, in this case.

ED had filed its charge sheet against Chandrashekhar, his wife, and other accused in the case in December.

In August last year, the agency had raided some of Chandrashekhar's premises and seized a sea-facing bungalow in Chennai, Rs 82.5 lakh in cash and over a dozen luxury cars.

It had claimed, in a statement, that Chandrashekhar is a “known conman” and is being probed by the Delhi Police in a case of alleged criminal conspiracy, cheating, and extortion to the tune of about Rs 200 crore.

The matter would be heard next on February 14.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)