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TMI Blog2024 (4) TMI 718X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the ECIR No. DLZO-I/35/2022, is that a case was registered against the applicant i.e., Amanatullah Khan, a Member of Legislative Assembly ('MLA') of Delhi, from Aam Aadmi Party, as well as Mr. Mahboob Alam, the then CEO of Delhi Waqf Board ('DWB') and other unknown persons, in relation to the predicate offence's case registered against the accused persons i.e. FIR No. 9(A) dated 23.11.2016, registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation ('CBI'), AC-III, New Delhi for offences punishable under Section 120B of Indian Penal Code, 1860 ('IPC') and Section 13(1)(d) read with Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 ('PC Act'). Thereafter, the following cases were also clubbed in the present ECIR: i. FIR No. 05/2020, dated 28.01.2020, registered at Police Station Anti Corruption Branch ('ACB'), Delhi, for offence punishable under Section 7 of the PC Act read with Section 120B of IPC; ii. FIR No. 378, dated 16.09.2022, registered as Police Station Jamia Nagar, Delhi for offence punishable under Sections 25/54 & 59 of the Arms Act, 1959; and iii. FIR No. 380, dated 16.09.2022, registered at Police Station Jamia Nag ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n Urdu newspapers. 4. The summary of the allegations, in FIR No. 05/2020, registered at Police Station ACB, Delhi, for offence punishable under Section 7 of the PC Act read with Section 120B of IPC; registered on the complaint dated 25.06.2019 of Mr. Hafiz Irshad Qureshi, investigation in which is pending, are as under: i. The Chairman of DWB had given advertisement in the daily, 'Inquilab' dated 26.02.2019 for various posts, and as a result, walk-in interviews had been held in the office of DWB, Daryaganj, Delhi on 01.03.2019 and 02.03.2019, without the prior approval of the Revenue Secretary, Delhi Administration, Secretary (Services), Delhi Administration and the concerned Minister for DWB. ii. The applicant/accused i.e. Amanatullah Khan had purchased a fogging machine for Rs. 7,00,000/-, for use in Okhla area, whereas payment for the same had been made by DWB. Further, tents worth Rs. 25,00,000/-, had been purchased by the earlier committee, and the same had been lying abandoned in Fatehpuri Masjid, Delhi. The original value of the said tents was not more than Rs. 4 lacs, and the DWB had to suffer a loss due to waste of the tents. iii. Properties worth more than ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... eu of giving favours to the bidders by leasing out the Waqf properties to them, illegally giving jobs to various persons in DWB and misappropriating DWB funds. ii. The applicant herein, in conspiracy with accused namely Zeeshan Haider, Daud Nasir, Jawed Imam Siddiqui, Kausar Imam Siddiqui and M/s. Sky Powers had laundered the proceeds of crime by utilizing the same for purchasing properties i.e. Plot nos. 275 and 276, Tikona Park, Jamia Nagar, Delhi from Jawed Imam Siddiqui, in the name of M/s. Sky Powers as well as Sarah Construction Company i.e. a proprietorship of Daud Nasir, vide Sale Agreement dated 17.09.2021. As per the evidence recovered by the investigating agencies including one white colour diary, an amount of approximately Rs. 36 crores had been paid, for purchasing the properties in question, to Jawed Ahmed Siddiqui and his wife Ms. Ayesha Quamar. Out of Rs. 36 crores, an amount of Rs. 27 crores had been paid in cash and Rs. 9 crores through bank. iii. Further, Zeeshan Haider had allegedly paid a sum of Rs. 12.80 crores, of which Rs. 8.90 crores had been purportedly paid in cash and Rs. 3.90 crores had been transferred through banking channels. During investigation ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ted in the present case. Learned Senior counsel further argues that as far as the predicate offence cases of the present applicant are concerned, he has been granted bail by the learned Trial Court in FIR bearing No. 09(A) registered by the CBI, vide order dated 01.03.2023. It is further submitted that the applicant has also been granted bail by the learned Trial Court in FIR bearing No. 05/2020 registered by the ACB, vide order dated 28.09.2022. 8. Sh. Kapil Sibal, Senior Counsel for the applicant/accused further argues that after the registration of the present ECIR on 16.09.2022, searches were conducted at the residential premises of the present applicant/accused on 10.10.2023 and nothing incriminating was found against him. It is also contended that FIR bearing No. 5A, registered by Police Station ACB, Delhi, for offences punishable under Section 7 of the PC Act and Section 120B of IPC, contains the same allegations as in FIR bearing No. 9A, registered by CBI, for offences punishable under Section 13(1)(2) PC Act and Section 120B IPC. Therefore, there cannot be two FIRs. on the same set of facts or allegations. In FIR bearing No. 9 (A), CBI has filed the chargesheet, with resp ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... any work or that they were not qualified for the job and that it has also come on record that previously, DWB had recruited employees without there being any rules and regulations. It was also held that tenancies have been created at a higher rent than the rent being taken from the earlier tenants. Therefore, prima facie, no loss to the exchequer has been caused concerning the said tenancies. 10. Thus, it has been asserted by learned Senior Counsel that considering the aforementioned points, it is noteworthy that the precise amount of purported proceeds of crime remains undisclosed, and there are no allegations concerning the generation of such proceeds in the predicate offences case. The trail of money has not been traced. Moreover, there exists no evidence implicating the present applicant in any acts involving the placement, layering, or integration of proceeds of crime. 11. Sh. Kapil Sibal, learned Senior Counsel appearing for the present applicant/accused argues that prosecution under Section 3 of the PMLA hinges on proving illicit gains from criminal activities tied to the scheduled offences. The Directorate of Enforcement cannot apply the PMLA speculatively or assume sched ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ed during the search conducted on 10.10.2023. Pursuant to the same the present applicant on 09.02.2024, had informed the Assistant Director, Directorate of Enforcement, via email that he had authorized a person to appear on his behalf and on 09.02.2024, the authorized person had appeared before the Directorate of Enforcement and had complied with the summon by assisting Directorate of Enforcement in extracting and examining the phone data. Further, on 16.02.2024, the present applicant had again received a summons under Section 50 of the PMLA from Directorate of Enforcement, directing him to appear before Directorate of Enforcement on 19.02.2024 at 11:00 AM. However, on 19.02.2024 the present applicant via email had informed the Assistant Director, Directorate of Enforcement, that the anticipatory bail application of the present applicant is pending for adjudication before the learned Trial Court and that the learned Trial Court was pleased to issue notice for 20.02.2024. It was further stated in the email that the present applicant would render full cooperation to the Directorate of Enforcement after the adjudication of the said application by the learned Trial Court. It is further ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... on and cooperate with Directorate of Enforcement and therefore, the present applicant be enlarged on anticipatory bail pursuant to any stringent conditions imposed by this Court to which the present applicant shall adhere. SUBMISSIONS ON BEHALF OF THE RESPONDENT 14. Per contra, Sh. Zoheb Hossain, Special Counsel appearing on behalf of the Directorate of Enforcement opposes the present anticipatory bail application filed by the applicant/accused and further argues that the anticipatory bail application deserves to be dismissed as the rigors of the mandatory twin conditions under Section 45 of the PMLA are equally applicable in case of anticipatory bail. Reliance for the same has been placed on the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Vijay Madanlal Choudhary & Ors. vs Union of India & Ors 2022 SCC OnLine SC 929 wherein the Hon'ble Apex Court has upheld the constitutional validity of the twin conditions of bail, as prescribed in Section 45 of the PMLA and has observed that the relief of bail, be it in the nature of regular bail or anticipatory bail, is circumscribed by the conditions in Section 45 of the PMLA. It is further submitted that based on the investigation bein ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... m Siddiqui to Zeeshan Haider and Daud Nasir upon the instructions of the present applicant/accused. 16. Furthermore, Sh. Zoheb Hossain appearing for Directorate of Enforcement further contends that despite the issuance of numerous summons to the applicant, he has intentionally evaded them and has not cooperated with the investigation in person thus far. Based on the conduct of the present applicant, it is evident that the same demonstrates a lack of honesty, and it is apparent that he has no intention of participating in the investigation. It is further argued that the present applicant/accused has deliberately evaded the summons under Section 50 of the PMLA. It is further emphasized that as per the catena of judgments of the Hon'ble Apex Court that during the bail application stage, the court should avoid delving into the merits of the case to determine whether an offense has been committed by the accused. Rather, the focus should solely be on assessing the charges against the accused and their involvement in the offense's commission. In the present case, ample evidence has been presented to prima facie establish that the applicant has engaged in money laundering activiti ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... case of P. Chidambaram v. Directorate of Enforcement (2019) 9 SCC 24, the Hon'ble Apex Court has made following observations on grant of anticipatory bail and has held that grant of anticipatory bail to some extent, interferes with the course of investigation and thus, Courts must circumspect while exercising such power: "69. Ordinarily, arrest is a part of procedure of the investigation to secure not only the presence of the accused but several other purposes. Power under Section 438 Cr.P.C. is an extraordinary power and the same has to be exercised sparingly. The privilege of the pre-arrest bail should be granted only in exceptional cases. The judicial discretion conferred upon the court has to be properly exercised after application of mind as to the nature and gravity of the accusation; possibility of applicant fleeing justice and other factors to decide whether it is a fit case for grant of anticipatory bail. Grant of anticipatory bail to some extent interferes in the sphere of investigation of an offence and hence, the court must be circumspect while exercising such power for grant of anticipatory bail. Anticipatory bail is not to be granted as a matter of rule and it ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... withstanding anything to the contrary contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), and accordingly the officers authorised under this Act are empowered to arrest an accused without warrant, subject to the fulfillment of conditions under section 19 and subject to the conditions enshrined under this section." (Emphasis Supplied) Judicial Precedents: Mandatory Twin Conditions 22. Section 45(1) of PMLA lists the twin conditions that must be satisfied before an accused can be enlarged on bail in a case of money laundering. In this context, it will be relevant to take note of the observations of Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Vijay Madanlal Choudhary v. Union of India 2022 SCC OnLine SC 929, on the satisfaction of mandatory twin conditions under Section 45 of PMLA, which are extracted hereunder: "387. Having said thus, we must now address the challenge to the twin conditions as applicable post amendment of 2018. That challenge will have to be tested on its own merits and not in reference to the reasons weighed with this Court in declaring the provision, (as it existed at the relevant time), applicable only to offences punishable for a term of imprisonment of mor ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... y the Court in Ranjitsing Brahmajeetsing Sharma. The Court while dealing with the application for grant of bail need not delve deep into the merits of the case and only a view of the Court based on available material on record is required. The Court will not weigh the evidence to find the guilt of the accused which is, of course, the work of Trial Court. The Court is only required to place its view based on probability on the basis of reasonable material collected during investigation and the said view will not be taken into consideration by the Trial Court in recording its finding of the guilt or acquittal during trial which is based on the evidence adduced during the trial. As explained by this Court in Prasad Nimmagadda, the words used in Section 45 of the 2002 Act are "reasonable grounds for believing" which means the Court has to see only if there is a genuine case against the accused and the prosecution is not required to prove the charge beyond reasonable doubt." (Emphasis Supplied) 23. In case of Tarun Kumar v. Enforcement Directorate 2023 SCC OnLine SC 1486, the Hon'ble Apex Court had held as under: "17. As well settled by now, the conditions specified under Sectio ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ney-laundering, requires a systematic approach. Further, it can never be the intention of the Parliament to exclude the operation of Section 45 of 2002 Act in the case of anticipatory bail, otherwise, it will create an unnecessary dichotomy between bail and anticipatory bail which not only will be irrational but also discriminatory and arbitrary. Thus, it is totally misconceived that the rigors of Section 45 of the 2002 Act will not apply in the case of anticipatory bail. *** 412. As a result, we have no hesitation in observing that in whatever form the relief is couched including the nature of proceedings, be it under Section 438 of the 1973 Code or for that matter, by invoking the jurisdiction of the Constitutional Court, the underlying principles and rigors of Section 45 of the 2002 must come into play and without exception ought to be reckoned to uphold the objectives of the 2002 Act, which is a special legislation providing for stringent regulatory measures for combating the menace of money-laundering." (Emphasis supplied) 26. Again in the decision of Directorate of Enforcement v. M. Gopal Reddy Crl.Appeal No. 534/2023, the Hon'ble Apex Court had expressed that the Hi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ases of economic offences. Economic offences stand as a different class as they affect the economic fabric of the society. In Directorate of Enforcement v. Ashok Kumar Jain (1998) 2 SCC 105, it was held that in economic offences, the accused is not entitled to anticipatory bail. *** 83. Grant of anticipatory bail at the stage of investigation may frustrate the investigating agency in interrogating the accused and in collecting the useful information and also the materials which might have been concealed. Success in such interrogation would elude if the accused knows that he is protected by the order of the court. Grant of anticipatory bail, particularly in economic offences would definitely hamper the effective investigation. Having regard to the materials said to have been collected by the respondent-Enforcement Directorate and considering the stage of the investigation, we are of the view that it is not a fit case to grant anticipatory bail. 84. In a case of money-laundering where it involves many stages of "placement", "layering i.e. funds moved to other institutions to conceal origin" and "interrogation i.e. funds used to acquire various assets", it requires systematic and ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d (3) shall be deemed to be a judicial proceeding within the meaning of Sections 193 and 228 of the IPC. Even so, the fact remains that Article 20(3) or for that matter Section 25 of the Evidence Act, would come into play only when the person so summoned is an accused of any offence at the relevant time and is being compelled to be a witness against himself. This position is well-established. *** 431. In the context of the 2002 Act, it must be remembered that the summon is issued by the Authority under Section 50 in connection with the inquiry regarding proceeds of crime which may have been attached and pending adjudication before the Adjudicating Authority. In respect of such action, the designated officials have been empowered to summon any person for collection of information and evidence to be presented before the Adjudicating Authority. It is not necessarily for initiating a prosecution against the noticee as such. The power entrusted to the designated officials under this Act, though couched as investigation in real sense, is to undertake inquiry to ascertain relevant facts to facilitate initiation of or pursuing with an action regarding proceeds of crime, if the situation ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... on or through authorised agent and are required to state truth upon any subject concerning which such person is being examined or is expected to make statement and produce documents as may be required in a case." (Emphasis supplied) 29. Recently, the Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Directorate of Enforcement v. State of Tamil Nadu, SLP (Crl.) NO. 1959-1963/2024, explained the power to summon a person under Section 50 of PMLA and consequent duty of the person so summoned to respect and respond to the same. These observations are extracted hereunder: 5. Sub-section (3) of Section 50 thereof being relevant, reads as under:- "(3) All the persons so summoned shall be bound to attend in person or through authorised agents, as such officer may direct, and shall be bound to state the truth upon any subject respecting which they are examined or make statements, and produce such documents as may be required." 6. From the bare reading of the said provisions, it clearly transpires that the concerned officers as mentioned therein, have the power to summon any person whose attendance he considers necessary, either to give evidence or produce any record during the course of investigatio ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of Vijay Madanlal Choudhary (supra), wherein it was held that the statements recorded under Section 50 of PMLA cannot be compared to statements under Section 67 of NDPS Act, and that such statements were not in violation of Article 20(3) of the Constitution of India. 32. Therefore, at the stage of adjudicating an anticipatory bail application, the statements recorded under Section 50 of PMLA, will be relevant to be considered and appreciated, alongwith other evidence collected by the investigating agency, for the purpose of ascertaining whether the offence of money-laundering is prima facie made out against an accused or not. INVESTIGATION CONDUCTED SO FAR & THE ROLE OF PRESENT APPLICANT Investigation by the Agencies: Seizure of Incriminating Material 33. In the present case, the ACB, while carrying out investigation in FIR No. 05/2020, had conducted searches at various locations, owned and controlled by the applicant Amanatullah Khan and his close associates Hamid Ali Khan, and Kausar Imam Siddiqui i.e. accused no. 4 in prosecution complaint, which had led to seizure of various incriminating documents/records/articles, including illegal weapons and three diaries containing de ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... As per prosecution, Zeeshan Haider, Daud Nasir and Jawed Imam Siddiqui in their statements recorded under Section 50 of PMLA have admitted the transactions about the properties in question and had also submitted the details of the agreement. According to the version of the accused persons, agreement dated 17.09.2021 was purportedly executed between the seller Ayesha Quamar and the purchaser i.e. M/s. Sky Powers (accused no. 5 in prosecution complaint), a firm owned by Zeeshan Haider, as well as Sara Constructions, a proprietorship of Daud Nasir. In this agreement, the sale consideration was mentioned as Rs. 13.40 crores out of which Rs. 5 crores were shown to have been paid through bank transactions and rest of the amount was shown to be paid in future, without there being any further details. Search and Seizure by the Directorate of Enforcement 39. In the present case, further searches were carried out at several locations and various incriminating records and digital evidence were seized including the mobile phone of Zeeshan Haider as well as another sale agreement dated 17.09.2021, in addition to the agreement which was submitted by the accused persons in respect of the same p ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... mam Siddiqui had sold the properties in question to Zeeshan Haider, through him, at the behest of the present applicant, wherein Kausar was to receive a total of Rs. 50-55 lacs as commission, however, he had received only Rs. 16-17 lacs till date. Analysis of bank account statements of sellers and buyers of property including the accused persons 46. As regards the bank account statements of the sellers of the property i.e. Jawed Imam Siddiqui and Ayesha Quamar, it was revealed that the amount which was transacted through bank was credited into their bank accounts, and further, that a total amount of Rs. 11 crores had been deposited in their bank accounts during the period between 2017 to 2022, and out of the same, cash deposit of about Rs. 3.81 crore were declared as sale proceeds of the properties in question. 47. It is also the case of prosecution that the transactions carried out through banks, which are mentioned in the diary, matches with the corresponding bank account statements of the sellers of the property. Similarly, certain cash transactions mentioned in the diary also match with the cash deposits made in the bank accounts of Jawed Imam Siddiqui and Ayesha Quamar. It, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d by the prosecution between Nawab and Yamin Ali from which it could be inferred that the present applicant was the main person behind purchase of the properties. 52. Therefore, on the basis aforesaid, it is the case of prosecution that the cash amounts which have been paid by Daud Nasir, Zeeshan Haider, Saquib Islam Khan, Yamin Ali Chaudhury and Nawab Ahmed, were in fact the proceeds of crime which came from the present applicant Amanatullah Khan. CAN FILING OR PENDENCY OF ANTICIPATORY BAIL APPLICATION OR PETITION FOR QUASHING OF SUMMONS BE GROUND TO NOT JOIN INVESTIGATION? 53. In the case at hand, the applicant had first preferred a petition before this Court wherein he had challenged the summons issued to him, and on this ground itself, he had skipped the summons issued to him by the Directorate of Enforcement. However, after a week of filing this petition, the applicant had chosen to withdraw the same by not pressing for any relief. Thereafter, he had avoided subsequent summons on grounds of anticipatory bail application being filed before the Sessions Court, the same being listed for arguments or it being reserved for orders. 54. Thus, it is one of the arguments raised bef ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rather it is the boundened duty of every citizen to join investigation when called for. Needless to say, this Court should not be laying down that a citizen will not have a right to seek anticipatory bail, however, to make that a ground for not appearing before the investigating agency cannot be permitted by Courts. WHETHER NON-COOPERATION WITH THE INVESTIGATION AGENCY WILL COME IN WAY OF GRANT OR REFUSAL OF ANTICIPATORY BAIL 60. The State has a right to summon a person, through the investigating agencies, to ensure rule of law and bring those who are in conflict with law and in violation of law, within the confines of law. The power of Directorate of Enforcement to summon a person is circumscribed under Section 50 of PMLA and as held by Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Vijay Madanlal Choudhary (supra) and Directorate of Enforcement v. State of Tamil Nadu (supra), a person so summoned under Section 50 is bound to respect the same. 61. Not responding to or attending to the notices or summons of an investigating agency would amount to non-cooperation with investigation. The Conduct of Applicant of Non-Compliance of Six Summons Issued by Directorate of Enforcement 62. The prese ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ation till date. The applicant has also failed to provide the investigation agency with documents which were mentioned in 'Annexure-A' which was repeatedly sent to him with the summons on several dates. In case, the applicant had nothing to hide and the investigating agency was calling him for investigation, he could have joined the investigation and clarified his position. For a reference, the details which the applicant had been asked to submit are as under: "Annexure-A 1. Details of your family members along with their PAN and contact details. 2. Details of Firms/Companies/Trusts/Proprietorships etc. in which you or your family members are Director/Trustee/Chairman/Proprietor/Beneficial Owner etc. 3. Details of all Bank Accounts maintained by you, your family members and company/firm etc. (if any). 4. Details of movable and immovable properties held in yours, your family members and company/firm's etc. (if any) name along with the details of all movable/immovable properties gifted/donated by you to any of your family members or any other person. 5. ITRs. from 2015 and onwards filed by you and your family members. 6. Company/firm (if any) Balance Sheet f ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rt of law. 69. Every effort of any individual to avoid compliance with requirements of law will invite legal consequences. As in the present case, effort to avoid compliance with the summons and joining investigative process repeatedly will become a relevant consideration while adjudicating an application for grant of anticipatory bail which has its own jurisprudence. BALANCING THE RIGHT OF ACCUSED & RIGHT OF INVESTIGATING AGENCY 70. Right to life, liberty and security of a person is paramount under the Constitution of India and in the criminal law in India. However, at the same time, the powers of the investigating agency to investigate an offence wherein the joining and providing information by a person is required, sending of summons cannot amount to infringing one's right to freedom and personal liberty on the pretext that the person concerned has apprehension of being arrested. For that, he has a separate remedy to take recourse too, in the form of anticipatory bail as well as regular bail before the Court of law or quashing of summons on whatever ground he deems appropriate. 71. In case, the conduct of a person for not joining investigation on the pretext that if he j ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... other common citizen without creating a special class for them as all citizens are equal in the eyes of law. This is more critical when such persons refuse to assist but rather resist the investigative process, especially the process which has not been struck down by a Court of law as illegal. 77. Undoubtedly, every such person as any other citizen of India is entitled to the protection of law, however, the law will also equally apply to him, subject to any privilege if at all, in a case applicable to him. Needless to say, the protection as per law which is available to all citizens is also available to such members and public figures. Their standing in lives or being an elected representative of the people does not create a class or elite class entitling them to different treatment being extended under the same law. 78. Rather an electorate representative and his conduct in cooperating with the investigating agencies on public turf has to be equal, if not on a higher pedestal. Furthermore, the investigating agencies in India have a right to conduct investigation and to perform their duties on behalf of citizens of this country itself as in the present case, the electorate i.e. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ny person skips multiple summons of any investigating agency including ED, neither the investigating agency nor the Court of law are able to bring such persons to obey the mandate of law and such a person can be enlarged on anticipatory bail. Conversely, a message may be taken by the public that such avoidance of multiple summons and non-joining of investigation by any investigating agency is permissible in law. 84. When a person does not join investigation upon receipt of summons of investigating agency which have not been declared illegal or struck down by a Court of law, it means that he has acted in a way so as to prevent the Law Enforcement Agency from collecting information about a suspected offence. Such an attempt and conduct of a person results in delaying the administration of justice, since it delays investigation of a suspected offence. Refusing to assist, aid, provide relevant information asked for by the Law Enforcement Agency when lawfully asked, failing to appear before the investigating agency, despite being bound in law, such non-appearance thus, amounts to obstructing the Law Enforcement Agency and the concerned officers from performing their duties to investiga ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nsideration as Rs. 36 crore, as against one alleged false and fabricated agreement which shows the sale consideration as Rs. 13.40 crore which has been allegedly prepared at the behest of present applicant to conceal the proceeds of crime and misguide the investigating agency; C. The statement of accused Kausar Imam Siddiqui recorded under Section 50 of PMLA in which he admits that the agreement having consideration amount as Rs. 36 crores is genuine and was executed at the time of sale of properties and the said agreement was witnessed by him, and that the contents of the diary seized by the ACB had been written by him in his handwriting, which includes the amounts paid and attributed to the present applicant in respect of transaction in question; D. The bank account statements of the sellers of the properties in question, which corroborate the factum of sale agreement having consideration of Rs. 36 crores being genuine and the agreement having Rs. 13.40 crores as sale consideration being false and fabricated; E. The bank account statements of purchasers of the properties and other persons who have purportedly paid money, which reflect that the cash amounts paid by the said ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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