PMLA case: SC refuses to grant interim relief to former Maharashtra minister Anil Deshmukh

The Supreme Court docket Monday refused to grant interim reduction to former Maharashtra house minister Anil Deshmukh who was in search of safety from any coercive motion in reference to a cash laundering case lodged by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) A 3-judge bench headed by Justice A M Khanwilkar mentioned Desmukh is at liberty to entry cures accessible to him underneath the regulation.

“We aren’t inclined to grant any interim reduction,” mentioned the bench, additionally comprising justices Krishna Murari and V Ramasubramanian.

In the course of the listening to, the counsel showing for Deshmukh informed the bench that it is a basic case of “political witch-hunt”.

Solicitor Normal Tushar Mehta mentioned there are severe allegations of cash laundering within the case.

“You’re taking recourse to cures which can be found to you underneath the regulation,” the bench informed Deshmukh’s counsel.

The highest courtroom was listening to a batch of pleas, together with these difficult the constitutional validity of sure provisions of the Prevention of Cash Laundering Act (PMLA).

ED had earlier issued summons to the 71-year-old NCP chief in reference to a legal case registered underneath the PMLA associated to an alleged Rs 100 crore bribery-cum-extortion racket that led to Deshmukh’s resignation in April this 12 months.

The ED case towards Deshmukh and others was registered after the CBI had lodged a corruption case associated to allegations of a minimum of Rs 100 crore bribery made by former Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh.

In his letter to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray after he was faraway from the police commissioner’s publish, Singh had alleged that Deshmukh had requested suspended Mumbai Police assistant police inspector Sachin Waze to extort over Rs 100 crore a month from bars and eating places in Mumbai.

Deshmukh needed to resign from his publish in April following the allegations and he has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.

The ED had arrested Deshmukh’s private secretary and private assistant after it carried out raids towards them and the NCP chief in Mumbai and Nagpur.