Mumbai: Pune-based builder Avinash Bhosale’s son Amit Bhosale was on Friday given a clean chit in a money laundering case on the basis of an apex court ruling that held that if the scheduled offence on the basis of which the money laundering offence is registered, does not exist, the case would not stand. The builder was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with another fraud case concerning Yes Bank and is presently in custody.
In the present case, the police had filed a closure report in a Pune magistrate court in connection with a cheating case registered at Pune’s Chatrusinghni police station pertaining to the illegal transfer of property. It had thereafter, filed a ‘B Summary’ was filed - such a report meaning that the complaint lodged was false. Bhosale had relied on the SC ruling and sought a discharge. He had pointed out that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had registered a money laundering case based on this cheating case in 2021 and had filed a chargesheet thereafter and during both these events, the cheating case was not in existence.
Special Judge MG Deshpande said in the order that it is clear that the very complaint was filed on false or vengeful allegations and if there was no criminal activity and whatever alleged in the FIR is false and an outcome of vengeance, the question of attributing it to such as to attract provisions of PMLA, does not arise. It said if the accused are prosecuted for this case, it will be a futile exercise. It reiterated the apex court’s observations that if there is no ‘scheduled offence’, then the provisions of the PMLA cannot stand alone.
The court said that there is nothing to show that the proceeds or properties in question are derived or obtained directly or indirectly from criminal activity. The order said further that it is necessary to note that the ED, despite knowledge of the closure report, has recorded its complaint and filed a chargesheet, which speaks volumes.
