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2024 (12) TMI 745

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..... f evidence tampering, threat or influence over the material witnesses, the societal impact of such release, and the risk of the accused absconding among others. Since the charge sheet in the ED Case (ECIR No. KLZO- 11/19/2022) has already been filed but charges are yet to be framed, the Trial Court is directed to decide on framing of charges before the commencement of the winter vacations and/or before 31.12.2024, whichever is earlier - the Trial Court shall thereafter fix a date within the second and third week of January 2025 for recording the statements of such prosecution witnesses who are the most material or vulnerable - petition disposed off. - SURYA KANT And UJJAL BHUYAN , JJ. ORDER Leave granted. 2. The Appellant has been a Member of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly since 2001, and was a member of the ruling party of the State at the relevant time. He was inducted as a Minister in the West Bengal State cabinet between 2011 and 2022 and seems to have held the post of the State Education Minister since 2016. During his tenure as the State Education Minister, recruitments to various posts like: (i) Primary School Teachers; (ii) Assistant School Teachers; (iii) Group C s .....

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..... s showcasing the appointment of Group D staff such as admit cards of candidates, intimation letters for verification of testimonials and personality test, application forms etc. are claimed to have been recovered. The searches conducted at the residential premises of the Appellant s close aide further led to the seizure of cash amounting to Rs. 21.90 crores and gold jewellery amounting to Rs. 76,97,100/-. 7. Additionally, based on the interrogation of the alleged close associate and scrutiny of the documents already seized, further search was conducted, whereby cash amounting to Rs. 27.90 crores and gold amounting to Rs. 4.31 crores were seized from the premises connected to companies that de facto were stated to belong to the Appellant, where he had allegedly appointed dummy directors. A deeper probe further revealed that these companies had been used to acquire, possess, conceal, appropriate, project and claim largescale proceeds of crime. 8. In the wake of these allegations, the Appellant was arrested by the ED under Section 19 of the PMLA, on 23.07.2022. The Special Court (CBI) (Trial Court) on 25.07.2022 allowed the ED custody of the Appellant for a period of ten days, which w .....

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..... on 45 of the PMLA. 11. The aggrieved Appellant is thus before us seeking bail, inter alia, on the following grounds: (i) the prolonged period of incarceration of over two years; (ii) the Appellant was neither named nor chargesheeted in the predicate offence; (iii) the Appellant does not have any criminal antecedents and has deep roots in society; (iv) he is not a flight risk or likely to tamper with evidence or witnesses; (v) no cash was recovered from the Appellant during search and seizure by the respondent ED; (vi) the Appellant is 72 years of age and suffers from multiple health ailments; (vii) the Appellant has already spent one-third of the total sentence prescribed for the offence and thus, is entitled to bail under Section 479 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS); and (viii) there is no hope in the trial commencing in view of the 442 documents and 183 witnesses cited for examination. Mr. Mukul Rohatgi, Learned Senior Counsel, lastly contended that the Appellant ought to be granted bail on the ground of parity, considering that his co-accused have already been released on bail. 12. Per contra, Shri S.V. Raju, Learned Additional Solicitor General of India, h .....

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..... vein, this Court has emphatically clarified that while an accused person s official status should not be grounds for denying bail, it also cannot constitute a special consideration to grant bail if otherwise no case is made out to provide such relief. Official positions, regardless of their stature, lose their relevance for the purpose of exercising judicial discretion judiciously. 16. Instead, the claim of the Appellant must be examined through the lens of various pleas he has taken to highlight his mitigating circumstances as well as the adverse impact it may cause in the wake of allegations of playing with the future of thousands of wellmerited aspirants and the undue benefits accrued to undeserving persons at the cost of these unsuccessful candidates. This later perspective underscores the broader societal harm caused by such actions and the erosion of trust in the integrity of public institutions. In this light, the statement of the Appellant s close associate(s) recorded under Section 50 of the PMLA assumes enormous significance, as it constitutes prima facie evidence linking the Appellant to substantial heaps of bribe money recovered from the associate s residence and compan .....

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..... t the Trial Court is able to complete the directions put forth in (b) and (e) at an earlier date, then the Appellant may be released on bail immediately thereafter and prior to the given date of 01.02.2025; h. Any attempt made by the Appellant to influence or threaten the witnesses, directly or indirectly, shall entail cancellation of the relief of bail; i. The Appellant shall appear before the Trial Court on every date of hearing, and no unnecessary adjournment shall be sought on his behalf. If the Appellant is found involved in prolonging the trial, it shall be taken as a valid ground for cancellation of bail; and j. The Appellant shall not be appointed to any public office (except that he shall continue to be a Member of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly) during the pendency of trial. 19. We find it necessary to clarify that these directions pertain only to the ED Case pending against the Appellant (ECIR No. KLZO- 11/19/2022). We have not expressed any opinion on the merits of any of the other pending investigations, including the recent arrest of the Appellant in one of the cases by the CBI. 20. Ordered accordingly. Pending applications, if any, are disposed of. - - TaxT .....

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