The Supreme Court on Friday rejected an appeal filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against the Delhi High Court decision to grant bail to Karnataka Congress leader D.K. Shivakumar in a money laundering case.
A Bench of Justices Rohinton F. Nariman and S. Ravindra Bhat dismissed a plea made by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to issue notice on the agency’s appeal.
The ED had moved the apex court arguing that Mr. Shivakumar was an influential person and could tamper with the evidence while on bail. Mr. Shivakumar was recently granted bail after he spent 50 days in custody since his arrest on September 3.
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Delhi High Court judge, Justice Suresh Kumar Kait, while granting bail, had remarked that Mr. Shivakumar was extensively interrogated by the probe agency since his arrest.
The bail order instructed Mr. Shivakumar to cooperate with the investigation and to not leave the country without the court’s approval. It had also directed him to pay a personal bail bond of ₹25 lakh with two sureties of like amount.
The High Court had concluded that the Congress leader was hardly a threat to the probe. It reasoned that he was not in power except as a Member of the Legislative Assembly.
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The court noted that there was no evidence placed by the agency to establish that either Mr. Shivakumar or his family members or associates had ever tried to contact any of the witnesses to not disclose any information regarding money earned by him for self and family members or associates.