Setalvad’s petitions on defreezing bank accounts dismissed

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court dismissed on Friday the pleas of activist Teesta Setalvad, her husband and her two NGOs challenging a Gujarat high court order rejecting their pleas for de-freezing their personal bank accounts.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra said the pleas were dismissed. Setalvad, her husband Javed Anand and their two NGOs — Sabrang Trust and Citizens for Justice and Peace — had challenged the October 7, 2015, verdict of the HC in the alleged misappropriation of funds received by their NGOs for Gujarat riot victims of 2002. The apex court had reserved its verdict on July 5 this year.

Earlier, the top court had questioned the source of money in the bank accounts of Setalvad and others, which were frozen by the Ahmedabad police in 2015 after the allegations of misappropriation surfaced.

One of the residents of Gulberg Society, Firoz Khan Pathan, had filed a complaint against Setalvad and others, alleging that money was raised to make a museum at Gulberg Society in the memory of 69 people killed in the 2002 Gujarat riots, but it had not been utilised for the purpose.

The freezing of the accounts by Ahmedabad police had come soon after its crime branch had started probing a case in which Setalvad and others were accused of embezzling ₹1.51 crore collected to convert Gulberg Society into a museum.

The high court had upheld the verdict of a lower court in this regard, observing that the probe was at a serious point in the alleged case of Gulberg Society fund embezzlement.

In the embezzlement case lodged by Gujarat police, the couple had challenged the cancellation of bail in the apex court, while in the alleged FCRA violation case, the CBI has challenged the anticipatory bail granted to them by the Bombay high court. Both matters are pending before the apex court.

TEESTA SETALVAD, HER HUSBAND JAVED ANAND AND THEIR TWO NGOS HAD CHALLENGED THE HIGH COURT VERDICT