HC CONSIDERS BHUJBAL’S ‘cooperation’ while allowing him bail, after two years

One of the main arguments of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) that the former deputy chief minister Chhagan Bhujbal has not been cooperating with the agency in the Rs 840 crore money laundering case has been trashed by the Bombay High Court. Two years later, HC in its order granting bail to the senior NCP leader, has considered the fact that Bhujbal appeared before the ED even after being fully aware of the fact that he might be arrested.

The single-judge bench of Justice Pradeep Deshmukh had granted bail to Bhujbal, last week and his detailed order with the reasoning was uploaded on the HC website on Wednesday.

In his 28-page orders, Justice Deshmukh has said, "When co-accused Sameer Bhujbal was arrested on February 1 2016, the applicant (Bhujbal) was in U.S.A. on a preplanned tour,

despite arrest of co-accused, he returned to India and made himself available to the ED on the first summons dated March 14 2016, on which date, he was taken intocustody. This fact itself requires consideration that there is no reason to presume that Bhujbal would abscond or flee from justice, if released on bail."

"Moreover, as the case of prosecution is based on the statement of witnesses and on documents from various banks accounts, there is least possibility of Bhujbal, tampering with the same. Another aspect for consideration in favour of Bhujbal is that his age as of today is 71 years, and since he is remanded to judicial custody, at no point

he was required for interrogation. As such, there appears no purpose in keeping him behind bar pending trials, wherein all the cases when considered together, 594 witnesses are cited and the charge-sheet is running in 57,102 pages, thus, he cannot be kept in custody for an indefinite period to deny his right to defend himself in accordance with law,"Justice Deshmukh added.

While allowing Bhujbal's bail plea, Justice Deshmukh observed, "The right to bail is not to be denied merely because of the sentiments of the community are against the accused. The primary purpose of bail in a criminal case is to relieve the accused from imprisonment and also the State of the burden of keeping him pending the trial."

Bhujbal is still admitted in the king Edward Memorial (KEM) hospital and is likely to be released within a day or two. Meanwhile, a vacation bench of the HC presided over by Justice Bharati Dangre refused to grant interim bail to Chhagan Bhujbal's son and law maker - Sameer Bhujbal. The bench has posted his bail plea for hearing on May 15.