Sanjay Raut walks out of Mumbai jail after securing bail in money laundering case
Mumbai, Nov 7: Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut walked out of Mumbai's Arthur Road jail on Wednesday evening, hours after a special court granted him bail in a money laundering case.
He was arrested on August 1 by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the money laundering case related to a housing project in suburban Goregaon.
At around 5 pm, Raut's legal team dropped his bail order into the Arthur Road jail box and at about 6.50 pm, the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader stepped out of the prison, where he had spent more than three months.
A large number of supporters of the Rajya Sabha member, who had assembled outside the jail, burst into celebration as soon as he walked out of the jail and raised slogans hailing him. Firecrackers were set off near the jail in central Mumbai by Raut's supporters.
The arrest of Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut in a money laundering case by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) was "illegal" and a "witch-hunt", a special court here said on Wednesday while granting him bail in the Patra Chawl redevelopment matter.
It also questioned why the main accused in the case, Rakesh and Sarang Wadhawan of real estate firm HDIL, were never arrested by the ED.
Further, the reason the agency did not arrest concerned officials of MHADA and other government departments was "nothing, but conveying a message to then Union agriculture minister and then (Maharashtra) chief minister, creating a fear psyche in their mind that they are the next in this queue," the judge said.
It was an "astonishing admitted fact that main accused Rakesh and Sarang Wadhawan of HDIL, who had not only generated over Rs 1,000 crore, but also allegedly placed, layered and integrated the same, were never arrested by the ED," it said.
The special judge for cases under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, M G Deshpande, granted bail to Sanjay Raut, arrested on August 1, and his aide Praveen Raut, arrested in February 2022.
The Wadhawans were arrested and could not secure bail to date in many other cases filed by the ED.
"However, in the instant case considering the major role attributed to them which they have also admitted, yet ED has not arrested and allowed them to be scot free, for the reason best known to them(probe agency)," the judge said.
The ED arrested Pravin Raut purely for a "civil dispute" and Sanjay Raut for "no reasons", it said.
"Basically, there was no reason nor any occasion to arrest both of them under section 19 of the PMLA for the allegations which are basically nothing but a civil dispute," the court said.
Section 19 of PMLA grants power to arrest any person to the concerned government officials.
There is absolutely nothing to show that right from the inception in 2006 -2007 Pravin Raut and Sanjay Raut entered the redevelopment project "with an intention to fraudulently induce and cheat MHADA and 672 occupants thereof," the court said.
Wadhawans and their firm, HDIL, had clearly admitted that their misdeeds caused delay and the same was acknowledged by the High Court when the MHADA too consented, said the judge.
All this has been ignored by ED, it said.
Sanjay Raut had sought time to appear before the ED when it summoned him, but this could not be the reason to arrest him, said the court.
"Therefore, I am of the firm opinion that the arrest of both accused is basically illegal without any qualifications required under the provisions of PML Act," it said.
It also referred to Sanjay Raut's plea that he had undergone angioplasty twice and he was kept in a room where there was no ventilation.
"It is only then due to the court intervention he could get a room with some ventilation in ED custody. All this prima- facie indicates that his arrest is nothing but a witch- hunt and annihilation of his valuable rights," the judge said.
The court referred to the statement of a witness Chandan Kelekar who alleged there were two meetings regarding the redevelopment which were attended by then Union Agriculture Minister (Sharad Pawar) and then Maharashtra Chief Minister; and this formed the basis for a supplementary complaint.
"Skipping all MHADA and government officials (from arrest) is nothing, but conveying a message to the then Union agriculture minister and then chief minister, creating a fear psyche in their mind that they are the next in this queue," the court held.
The court also said there were no `proceeds of crime' in the case that could have attracted PMLA, nor was there any evidence that whatever received by Sanjay Raut was proceeds of crime.
The ED had not concluded "even a single trial right from the establishment of this designated court by leading evidence and the court could not give a single judgment right from the last decade," the judge observed.
"...the extra ordinary pace with which ED arrests accused becomes not even a snail speed in conducting trials," the court added.
The ED's probe pertained to alleged financial irregularities in the redevelopment of the Patra Chawl, row tenement in suburban Goregaon, and related financial transactions involving Sanjay Raut's wife and associates.
In 2008, MHADA, a government agency, assigned a redevelopment contract for the Chawl to Guru Ashish Construction Private Limited (GACPL), a sister company of the Housing Development and Infrastructure Ltd (HDIL).
The GACPL was supposed to build 672 flats for the tenants and also give some flats to MHADA. It was free to sell the remaining land to private developers.
But the tenants did not get a single flat in the last 14 years as the company did not redevelop the Patra Chawl and sold land parcels and Floor Space Index (FSI) to other builders for Rs 1,034 crore, as per the ED.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Passing out parade held at IMA Dehradun, 491 young officers join Indian Army
Dehradun(PTI): After undergoing rigorous training at the Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun, 491 cadets participated in a grand Passing Out Parade on Saturday and will now be commissioned as officers in the Indian Army.
The spectacular parade, held at the historic Drill Square in front of the academy's Chatwood Building, was reviewed by Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi, who served as the reviewing officer.
Along with 491 Indian cadets, 34 foreign cadets from 14 friendly countries also participated in the Autumn Term 2025 Passing Out Parade.
A total of 525 officer cadets from the 157th Regular Course, 46th Technical Entry Scheme, 140th Technical Graduate Course, 55th Special Commissioned Officers Course, and Territorial Army Online Entrance Exam 2023 Course participated in the Passing Out Parade.
The 'Sword of Honour' and gold medal for securing first place during training was awarded to ACA Nishkal Dwivedi, the silver medal to BUO Badal Yadav for second place, and the bronze medal to SUO Kamaljeet Singh for third place.
The silver medal for securing first place in the 'Technical Graduate Course' was awarded to Officer Cadet Jadhav Sujit Sampat, and the silver medal for first place in the 'Technical Entry Scheme-46' was awarded to WCC Abhinav Mehrotra.
The silver medal for the 'Special Commission Officer Course' was given to Officer Cadet Sunil Kumar Chhetri.
Among the foreign cadets, the first place in merit was secured by JUO Mohammad Safin Ashraf from Bangladesh. The Army Chief's Banner for overall best performance in the Autumn Term was awarded to Imphal Company.
As the parade concluded, helicopters showered flowers on the newly commissioned officers from the sky.
On this occasion, General Dwivedi congratulated the new officers in his address for successfully completing their training. He praised the young officers for their high level of discipline, leadership qualities, and endurance, and urged them to uphold the glorious traditions of the Indian Army and serve the nation with loyalty, commitment, and honour.
General Dwivedi said that joining the army marks the beginning of a lifelong duty and selfless service.
The parents and guardians of the newly commissioned officers were also present during the passing out parade.
