Chandan Mondal Vs Enforcement Directorate (Calcutta High Court)
The Calcutta High Court considered a bail application filed in connection with a money laundering case under Sections 3 and 4 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA). The petitioner had been arrested on 26 November 2024 and had remained in custody for about one year and six months in the PMLA case. The prosecution arose from two CBI cases relating to alleged illegal recruitment of Group C and Group D staff in West Bengal schools, which formed the predicate offences for the Enforcement Directorate’s investigation.
The petitioner contended that he had been falsely implicated, was not named in the FIRs or original charge sheets, and had already obtained bail in the predicate CBI case after prolonged custody. He argued that the Enforcement Directorate delayed initiating action against him, failed to establish a money trail linking him to the proceeds of crime, relied on inadmissible material, and that the trial was unlikely to conclude soon because the prosecution cited 42 witnesses and 122 documents. He also contended that no pre-cognizance hearing under Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) had been conducted.
The Enforcement Directorate opposed bail, alleging that the petitioner was a principal field-level agent in a large-scale recruitment scam involving manipulation of appointments, collection of illegal gratification, routing of funds through third-party bank accounts, transfer of large sums to co-conspirators, and acquisition of immovable properties from the proceeds of crime. It argued that the petitioner failed to satisfy the twin conditions under Section 45 of the PMLA and that his release could result in tampering with evidence and influencing witnesses.
