Moin Qureshi case: Court reserves order on aide's bail plea

A Delhi court on Saturday reserved its order on the bail plea filed by a Hyderabad-based businessman Satish Sana Babu, in a money laundering case related to controversial meat exporter Moin Qureshi.

During the course of hearing, advocates KTS Tulsi and Mohit Mathur, appearing for Sana, said: "My statements cannot lead to my arrest as I was a witness and there is immunity provided to a witness that no such answers that a witness is compelled to give can subject him to be arrested."

"The entire case against me is based on my statements given in 2017, and 2019," Tulsi said on Sana's behalf.

Mathur further argued: "The statements I made to them in 2017 were recorded under Section 50 of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) of which they determined my status as a witness. Can they say now that my statements were unreliable. One year down the line, my statements have become a thorn in their skin."

Opposing the submissions, Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) DP Singh argued: "We made him accused from a witness as the investigation reveals many things against him. We don't want to go to a stage where he is not telling anything, and still enjoying the immunity."

"This is a crucial stage amid the investigation, we can make him an accused.... and granting him bail at this stage will effect the investigation," Singh added.

He further argued: "We have a short window of 60 days of which 20 days have passed and hence its necessary for me that till the time I file the chargesheet, the bail should not be granted and all others were granted bail after chargesheet was filed."

During the investigation, it came to the fore that Sana was a close aide of Qureshi, who is accused of Hawala transactions through Delhi-based operators.

In October last year, on the basis of a complaint filed by Sana, a case was registered against then CBI director Alok Verma and special director Rakesh Asthana on charges of accepting a bribe from a businessman, who was related to the case.

( With inputs from IANS )