An MLA or a public figure is not above the law of the land, the High Court here said on Monday while rejecting anticipatory bail to AAP legislator Amanatullah Khan in a money laundering case related to alleged irregularities in staff recruitment for the Delhi Waqf Board during his chairmanship.
The High Court also noted that Mr. Khan has “systematically and repeatedly avoided summons of the investigating agency”. Hence, granting him anticipatory bail will amount to “trivialising the alleged offence”, the court added.
According to the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Mr. Khan has been issued six summonses till date but he did not join investigation.
“When an accused repeatedly abstains from participation in the investigation, it not only hampers the progress of the investigation but also raises suspicions regarding their intentions,” the court remarked.
It further said the material brought before it prima facie shows the offence of money laundering being committed by Mr. Khan.
“The material evidences so gathered during the course of investigation under the PMLA [Prevention of Money Laundering Act] revealed that applicant Amanatullah Khan has acquired huge cash amounts, being the proceeds of crime out of criminal activities relating to his corrupt and illegal activities,” it said.
The Okhla MLA had approached the High Court after his application for anticipatory bail in the case was rejected by a trial court on March 1.
The money laundering case stems from a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) FIR and three Delhi Police complaints.
The ED, which earlier conducted raids on the premises of the legislator, has claimed that Mr. Khan acquired “huge proceeds of crime” in cash through illegal recruitment of staff in the Delhi Waqf Board and invested those to purchase immovable assets in the name of his associates.
