On Friday, a Mumbai court reserved its verdict on the bail application filed by former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh in the corruption case against him. The court will pronounce its verdict on January 18.
Aspecial court under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) has reserved its verdict on the bail application filed by former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh in the corruption case being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
The order will now be passed on January 18.
ANIL DESHMUKH’S BAIL PLEA
In his plea filed through advocate Aniket Nikam, Anil Deshmukh stated that he is entitled to statutory bail since no cognisance had been taken by the special court of the chargesheet within the statutory period of 60 days as prescribed under Section 167 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).
His counsel, senior advocate Vikram Chaudhri, argued that excluding the date of first remand, a period of 60 days had elapsed and a statutory embargo was created on any further custody as per Section 167.
Vikram Chaudhri added that the ED had extended Anil Deshmukh’s judicial remand on December 27, 2021 till January 9, 2022 without disclosing the above fact.
Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh added that the supplementary chargesheet against Anil Deshmukh had been filed on December 29, 2021, which is within the period of 60 days from the date of his arrest. He stressed that the question of cognisance was irrelevant when ascertaining right to default bail since Section 167(2) only pertains to completion of investigation within stipulated time.
The court is yet to give its verdict on the bail plea.
