Bombay HC grants interim bail to Sena MLA’s aide Pratap Sarnaik in money laundering case

The Bombay High Court has granted interim bail to an aide of Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) MLA Pratap Sarnaik in a money laundering case being probed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

The ED case is linked to a probe against the Tops Group security service provider company, its promoters and others in connection with alleged financial irregularities in providing security guards for the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) projects.

A single bench of Justice M S Karnik granted interim bail to MLA Sarnaik’s aide Amit Chandole, who was also a promoter of the security firm, and M Sasidharan, its former managing director.

Chandole and Sasidharan had sought release from prison in the light of the Supreme Court ruling that a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) cannot continue if there is no prior First Information Report registered by another agency.

As per the PMLA provisions, a prior ‘scheduled offence’ is a requisite for the ED to initiate action against a person.