From Our Bureau
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to list for hearing a plea of Maharashtra minister and NCP leader Nawab Malik for an immediate release in a money laundering case being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate.
He came to the top court after the Bombay High Court rejected his interim application for release.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Malik, mentioned the matter before a bench headed by Chief Justice of India N V Ramana for an urgent hearing. He said the Prevention of Money Laundering Act came in existence only in 2005 and so it cannot be applied to a transaction 22 years ago.”
The CJI agreed to list the matter. Malik is challenged the Bombay High Court’s March 15 order, rejecting his application, noting that his arrest does not make the order illegal or wrong, just because the Special Prevention of Money Laundering Act PMLA) is used.
After the Enforcement Directorate had arrested Malik under the provisions of the PMLA, he had filed a habeas corpus plea in the High Court claiming that his arrest by the ED and the consequent remands were illegal.
The High Court had said that Malik was arrested by the ED in accordance with the law, and subsequently been remanded to the ED`s custody and then to judicial custody following due process.
ED had arrested Minorities Development Minister Malik on February 23 over a property deal allegedly linked to the aides of gangster Dawood Ibrahim.
The federal agency has accused Malik of being part of an alleged criminal conspiracy to usurp a property in Mumbai`s Kurla area which currently has a market value of Rs 300 crore and belongs rightfully to one Munira Plumber.
However, Malik had submitted before the High Court that he had bought the property in a bonafide transaction three decades ago, and Plumber has now changed her mind about the transaction.
