ED NEEDS TO GRILL SENA LEADER ADSUL, SAYS HC; REJECTS PRE-ARREST BAIL

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court on Friday rejected former Shiv Sena MP Anandrao V Adsul’s petition for anticipatory bail in a case registered against him by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the alleged ₹980 crore fraud at the City Co-operative Bank.

Justice Nitin Sambre delivered his ruling after going through a status report of ED investigations shared in a sealed cover by additional solicitor general Anil Singh, who appeared for the federal agency along with lawyer Shreeram Shirsat.

Justice Sambre accepted ED’S request that based on its investigation so far, Adsul’s custodial interrogation was necessary and the Shiv Sena leader should not be granted a shield against arrest.

Senior lawyer Ashok Mudargi and lawyer Subodh Desai, who appeared for Adsul to seek anticipatory bail, said the former MP was already cooperating with investigations and did not respond to ED summons because he underwent an angioplasty and apprehended arrest. Adsul was summoned thrice by ED but he failed to show up for one reason or the other.

The 74-year-old politician’s residential and office premises were raided by ED officials in September this year in connection with a money laundering case registered against him linked to the alleged bank fraud.

His initial petition to cancel the ED case against him was rejected by a two-judge bench of the high court on October 14. In this petition, Adsul argued that the case smacked of political vendetta and selective approach by ED at the behest of Navneet Kaur Rana, an independent MP from Amravati after the high court cancelled and confiscated her caste certificate in June on his complaint.

Adsul’s request for an arrest shield was rejected by a Mumbai special court last month.

HIS INITIAL PLEA TO CANCEL THE ED CASE AGAINST HIM WAS REJECTED BY A TWO-JUDGE BENCH OF THE HIGH COURT ON OCTOBER 14