The Bombay High Court has quashed a money laundering case initiated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against Nagpur-based advocate Kishore Dewani in connection with the alleged kickbacks involving former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, holding that no offence under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) was made out.
A single bench of Justice Ashwin Bhobe, in an order passed on Monday, held that continuation of the proceedings against Dewani would amount to an abuse of the process of law and set aside the special court’s order taking cognisance of the ED complaint.
The ED case stemmed from a CBI FIR against Anil Deshmukh and others alleging corruption and extortion from bar owners in Mumbai during Deshmukh’s tenure as Home Minister.
According to the ED, a sum of about ₹2.20 crore was routed from Flourish Properties Pvt Ltd, allegedly linked to the Deshmukh family, to Dewani’s company, Premier Port Links. The agency alleged that the funds were “proceeds of crime” and that Dewani had assisted in their concealment and laundering through property transactions.
Dewani approached the High Court seeking quashing of the ED complaint and the special PMLA court’s cognisance order, contending that he had been falsely implicated and that there was no nexus between his transactions and any alleged proceeds of crime.
The High Court noted a fundamental chronological inconsistency in the ED’s case.
It recorded that the properties attributed to Dewani were purchased between 2005 and 2007, whereas the prosecution itself alleged that the scheduled offence and generation of proceeds of crime occurred much later, between December 2020 and February 2021.
The court observed:
“Hence, unarguably, the properties cannot be said to have any connection with the proceeds of crime, as the acts constituting the scheduled offence took place after its acquisition.”
On this basis, the bench held that the ED had failed to establish any link between Dewani’s property transactions and the alleged proceeds of crime arising from the corruption case against Deshmukh.
The court further found that no material was produced to demonstrate that Dewani had knowingly assisted in concealment or laundering of any tainted funds.
Holding that no case under the PMLA was made out, the High Court ruled that continuation of proceedings would be unjustified and an abuse of process.
It consequently:
- Quashed the ED complaint against Kishore Dewani, and
- Set aside the special PMLA court’s order taking cognisance and issuing notice.
The proceedings against Dewani thus stand terminated.
