Sehegal Hossain Vs Directorate of Enforcement (Delhi High Court)
Conclusion: Bail was granted to a person accused of smuggling cattle from India to Bangladesh after a jail term of 19 months undergone by the Accused as the documents involved in the present case were voluminous and the trial might take a long time to get concluded.
Held: CBI, ACB, Kolkata registered a Preliminary Enquiry (PE) against Sh. Satish Kumar and Others. The PE revealed that cattle smuggling was happening from India to Bangladesh by paying illegal gratification to BSF personnel deputed on the Border during 19.12.2015 to 22.04.2017. CBI alleged that an amount of Rs. 2000/- per cattle to BSF officials was paid and Rs. 500 to Customs Officials aside from the 10% of the Auction price from successful bidders. CBI, after completion of PE, registered a RC for offences under section 120B IPC and Sections 7, 11, & 12 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (PC Act). The Chargesheet under Section 173 of Cr.P.C., 1973 was filed against the accused persons, namely, Satish Kumar (the Applicant) and others. Applicant was arrested by on 09.06.2022 by CBI, Kolkata on the basis of FIR under Sections 7/11/12 of Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (hereinafter PC Act, 1988) and was in custody since that day, other than being released on Interim Bail on medical grounds for complete period of 6 weeks between 22.02.204 and 03.04.2024. On the basis of the information in the CBI case, ECIR/KLZO/41/2020 was registered by the Kolkata Zone, Enforcement Directorate, Government of India under Section 3 of the PMLA, 2002 punishable under Section 4 of PMLA, 2002 which was subsequently transferred to Delhi with the approval of the then Director, ED. ED thus, on the basis of investigation in the said ECIR, filed the Complaint Case; First supplementary Complaint. Applicant was named in the Second Supplementary Complaint and was arrested by the ED. The Second supplementary Complaint was in the Court. Consequently, his custody was shifted from Kolkata to New Delhi. It was held that the allegations against the Applicant were essentially in the nature of facilitating the offence of illegal cattle smuggling by providing authoritative support and consequent clout that he exercised on account of his being in the Police and being connected with an influential Political leader, the co-accused Mr. Anubrata Mondal. He helped in procuring stray cattle from various markets, collecting cash on behalf of co-accused, Mr. Anubrata Mondal, and laundering the PoC. The Applicant was an accused in the predicate offence as well, though admitted to bail in the said offence by this Court. Though the investigations qua assessee were complete and the Supplementary Complaint had been filed in the Court, but the trial had not been proceeding since last 2 years. Looking at his antecedents, he was not a flight risk, and he had deep roots in the Society, having been in the employment of the Govt. The evidence being essentially documentary, was not likely to be tampered or the witnesses influenced. Applicant had been in judicial custody from 09.06.2022, in the scheduled offence, and from 07.10.2022, in the present case, i.e. for over two years. The documents involved in the present case were voluminous and the trial might take a long time to get concluded as was observed in Anubrata Mondal, while granting the Bail to the co-accused. The Applicant was admitted to bail subject to conditions.
