The Delhi High Court has called for a response from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) regarding a plea filed by former Delhi minister Satyendar Kumar Jain. The plea challenges the legality of a trial court’s decision to acknowledge a charge sheet filed against him in a money laundering case.
Justice Neena Bansal Krishna, presiding over the case, issued a notice to the ED, directing the agency to submit a status report within the next 15 days. The court has scheduled the next hearing for August 22, where further deliberations on Jain’s plea will take place.
Satyendar Jain’s legal challenge focuses on overturning the July 29, 2022, order by a trial court which took cognisance of the ED’s charge sheet implicating him in financial misconduct. Additionally, Jain is contesting the summons issued to him and is seeking reversal of the orders that led to his remand in judicial custody. His ultimate goal through this legal battle is to secure his release from incarceration.
The ED has contested Jain’s petition, questioning its timeliness since the trial court’s order was issued in July 2022, and Jain has only recently mounted his challenge. The case against Jain includes serious allegations involving his wife Poonam Jain, and associates Vaibhav Jain, Ankush Jain, Ajit Prasad Jain, and Sunil Jain, along with four companies: Akinchan Developers Private Limited, Paryas Infosolutions Private Limited, Manglayatan Developers Private Limited, and JJ Ideal Estate Private Limited.
Also Read
The money laundering charges stem from a First Information Report (FIR) lodged by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on August 24, 2017, under the Prevention of Corruption Act. The FIR accuses Satyendar Jain of amassing assets disproportionate to his known sources of income during his tenure as a minister in the Delhi government, from February 14, 2015, to May 31, 2017.
कोर्ट