Mumbai (IANS) | A special court in Mumbai on Tuesday rejected the anticipatory bail plea of former Maharashtra minister Hasan Mushrif in an alleged money-laundering (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) case. In the petition filed by NCP (NCP) leader and former minister Mushrif had said that he feared arrest by the ED in the name of investigation and recording of statement under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The ED has argued that several crores of rupees were moved from two companies without any concrete business to support Sir Senapati Santaji Ghorpade Sugar Factory Pvt Ltd, in which Mushrif’s sons were directors or stakeholders.
Mushrif, in his bail plea, said that the entire matter was a result of a political campaign launched by former Bharatiya Janata Party MP Kirit Somaiya.
However, the ED refuted these arguments and said it was not pursuing the case against Mushrif, MLA from Kagal (Kolhapur) and former minister in the then Maha Vikas Aghadi government, for political reasons.
The ED argued that Mushrif is trying to shift the blame on others, but that does not end the crime. After hearing both the sides, Judge MG Deshpande rejected the bail plea of Mushrif, who had applied for similar relief from the Bombay High Court.
