NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday ordered that observations made by the trial court while granting bail to Gautam Malhotra and Rajesh Joshi in the money laundering case in the now-scrapped excise policy scam case cannot be relied upon by any other co-accused in any proceedings. While granting bail to both, the trial court said that the evidence was not sufficient for the case against them to be considered prima facie “genuine”.
The barring order of Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma was following the challenge by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against the trial court order which granted relief to Joshi and Malhotra. Seeking the cancellation of their bail, the ED also demanded that the observations and findings must not be used by any of the co-accused in any proceedings.
The court also issued notices on ED’s plea for cancellation of bail. Additional Solicitor General S V Raju, representing the ED, said the trial court took cognisance of the charge sheet filed in the case on May 1, noting that prima facie case was made out. However, on May 6, the trial court granted bail to the two accused observing that no offence was made out.
“There is a contradiction in the two orders. The trial court conducted a mini-trial which could not have been done at this stage,” the law officer said, adding the trial court’s bail order was erroneous as it indirectly reviews its own May 1 order. The ASG further submitted that the trial court gave a wrong finding that the investigation in the matter was still pending and the two accused persons were entitled to bail.
The High Court listed the matter for further hearing in July. The same trial court judge had dismissed the bail plea of AAP leader Manish Sisodia, also accused in a corruption case related to the excise policy, on April 28 and in a related corruption case being probed by the CBI on March 31. Sisodia, who was arrested on March 9, is currently in judicial custody in the ED case. According to the CBI and the ED, irregularities were committed while modifying the excise policy and undue favours were extended to licence holders.