By paying tax DK Shivakumar cannot turn tainted property into untainted, ED tells court
New Delhi, Sep 19: Just by paying the tax on it Congress leader D K Shivakumar cannot turn his tainted property into untainted one, the Enforcement Directorate said Thursday while opposed his bail application in a money laundering case.
The ED told Special Judge Ajay Kumar Kuhar that if released, Shivakumar may influence the persons who are in knowledge of his "grave offence" of money laundering and are yet to be examined.
Additional Solicitor General K M Nataraj, appearing for the ED, said he did not cooperate during the investigation and failed to offer any plausible explanation for the source of acquisition of properties worth Rs 800 crore.
"The declaration of property made by him is irrelevant. The question is how he acquired it. Even if he pays tax on it, it still remains tainted property. By just paying tax tainted property cannot be turned into untainted," the probe agency told the court.
The claims made by the politician were "unbelievable", it said.
"He says he is agriculturist. Rs 1.38 crore from agricultural income is projected by him in last 20 years. Entire property is Rs 800 crores. Saying that Rs 1.38 crore was invested and became 800 is unbelievable," the ED said.
Senior advocate Dayan Krishnan, appearing for the Karnataka Congress leader, opposed the submission saying he never claimed that the mere income from property became Rs 800 crore.
ED's special public prosecutors Amit Mahajan, N K Matta and Nitesh Rana also said that Shivakumar did not cooperate during questioning and offered no plausible explanation on the source of acquisition of the properties.
The court has posted the matter for further hearing on the application on September 21.
The agency said that Shivakumar, who is in judicial custody, did not cooperate during interrogation despite direct documentary evidence linking him with proceeds of crime in the case.
It also cited the "antecedents of the applicant, circumstances which are peculiar to the applicant, reasonable possibility of the securing the presence of the witness being influenced or evidence being tampered with a larger interest of the public/state and other similar considerations".
"If enlarged on bail, there exists all likelihood of the applicant hampering the investigation of the case and influencing the persons whose names were revealed during the probe recently. Investigation against the accused is at a crucial stage...
"Huge amount of proceeds of crime have been found to be laundered and investigation in this regard is ongoing. There exists a reasonable apprehension of crucial evidence being destroyed if the applicant is enlarged on bail," the ED said.
It said Shivakumar, 57, committed money laundering, "which posed a serious threat to the national economy and national interest" and that "it was committed with cool calculation and deliberate design with motive of personal gain regardless of the consequences to the society".
The agency informed the court that Shivakumar's daughter, Aisshwarya D K Shivakumar, 24, was also summoned during the probe and it was found that transactions to the tune of Rs 108 crore have been made in her name.
During the probe, the agency also recorded statement of Shivakumar's auditor N N Somesh who provided information about the properties acquired by the politician and his associates by making cash payments.
"The agency needs to summon and examine many more such persons and it is apprehended by the ED that if Shivakumar is granted bail, then there is every possibility that the applicant would influence such persons who are in knowledge of his offence of money laundering and would tamper with evidence," it said.
The agency said that the investments made by Shivakumar in the name of his family, associates and accompanies are enormous and as per his election affidavit filed in 2018, he along with his family members holds assets worth Rs 800 crore for which he is unable to provide the source of acquisition.
"The applicant, during the investigation so far, could not offer any plausible explanation with the respect to source for acquisition of all properties," the agency said.
Shivakumar diverted tainted money through more than 317 bank accounts which finally landed either in his or his family members' bank accounts, the agency said.
The ED had in September last year registered the money laundering case against Shivakumar, Haumanthaiah, an employee at the Karnataka Bhavan in New Delhi, and others.
The case was based on a charge sheet (prosecution complaint) filed by the Income Tax Department against them last year before a special court in Bengaluru on charges of alleged tax evasion and hawala transactions worth crores.
The I-T department has accused Shivakumar and his alleged associate S K Sharma of transporting huge amount of unaccounted cash on a regular basis through 'hawala' channels with the help of three other accused.
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'Sarke Chunar' row: Sanjay Dutt apologises; to sponsor education of 50 tribal girls
New Delhi (PTI): Actor Sanjay Dutt on Monday appeared before the National Commission for Women (NCW) in connection with the controversy over the song 'Sarke Chunar Teri Sarke' and submitted a written apology, expressing regret for any "unintended" harm caused to society.
During the hearing, held under NCW chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar, the commission raised concerns over alleged vulgarity and indecent representation of women in the song from the movie "KD The Devil" and questioned issues of intent, awareness and accountability.
The chairperson emphasised whether adequate due diligence was undertaken before participating in content that could be perceived as promoting objectification of women, while also underlining the responsibility of senior and influential public figures in ensuring that their work remains within the bounds of legal and societal standards.
As a corrective measure, Dutt committed to sponsoring the education of 50 tribal girl children as part of efforts towards social welfare and women's empowerment, the NCW said in a statement.
He also assured the commission that his future artist agreements would include mandatory legal due diligence provisions to ensure dignified and appropriate representation of women and children in films and related creative projects.
Actor Nora Fatehi, who was also summoned, could not appear as she is currently abroad and has sought a fresh date for the hearing.
On April 6, other individuals associated with the song, including director Kiran Kumar alias Prem, lyricist Raqueeb Alam and representatives of KVN Production Company Gautam K M and Suprith, appeared before the commission and submitted their apologies.
The NCW underscored that while artistic freedom is important, it must be exercised with responsibility and sensitivity, reiterating the need for accountability in content reaching wide public audiences and reaffirming its commitment to safeguarding the dignity and representation of women.
The Hindi version of the song, released on March 15 on YouTube, drew public ire for its sexually explicit lyrics.
After the outrage, the makers deleted the Hindi version of the song from YouTube, although it was widely played and shared across various platforms.
Fatehi, in a video later, distanced herself from the song, saying she shot the video for the Kannada version and her permission was not taken to use it in the Hindi version. The lyricist, singer and the director also apologised.
The issue was brought up in Lok Sabha during Question Hour by Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Anand Bhadoria last month.
Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the song was already banned and the government was ready to take action against such vulgarity.
"KD The Devil" is a Kannada film, dubbed in four languages, including Hindi. It will release on April 30. The film features Dhruva Sarja, V Ravichandran, Ramesh Aravind, Shilpa Shetty, and Dutt.
