Prasanna Kumar Roy Vs Enforcement Directorate (Calcutta High Court)
The petitioner sought bail in ML Case No. 1 of 2024 under Sections 3 and 4 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA). The case arose from two CBI cases concerning alleged irregularities in recruitment to government posts, which formed the predicate offences for the Enforcement Directorate’s ECIR. The petitioner contended that he was not originally named in the FIRs, challenged the registration of separate ECIRs, alleged mala fide delay in his arrest, asserted that his income and attached properties were legitimate, and argued that the investigation was substantially complete, the trial had not commenced, and his continued incarceration was unjustified. The ED opposed bail, alleging that the petitioner acted as the principal middleman in the recruitment scam, developed a network of agents, collected money from candidates, routed proceeds of crime through numerous companies and entities, acquired properties using such funds, and attempted to project cash deposits as legitimate income. The ED also relied upon the twin conditions under Section 45 of the PMLA and opposed bail on the grounds of the seriousness of the allegations, the risk of influencing witnesses, and the scale of the alleged proceeds of crime.
