Former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh Granted Bail In Money Laundering Case

Mumbai, 4th October 2022: Today (October 4, Tuesday) Anil Deshmukh, former Maharashtra Home Minister, was granted bail by the Bombay High Court in the money laundering case investigated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

The order was issued by Justice NJ Jamadar at around 2:30 PM.

The High Court instructed that the bail order should be postponed until October 13 to allow ED to appeal to the Supreme Court.

However, Deshmukh be in judicial custody at Arthur Road Prison as long as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is looking into a corruption case involving him.

Deshmukh and his accomplices are the subject of an investigation for alleged corruption which happened in between 2019 and 2021.

The CBI arrested Deshmukh and several individuals after conducting a preliminary investigation following a complaint made by attorney Dr. Jaishri Patil. The investigation was started as a result of a directive that the Bombay High Court issued on April 5, 2021 in response to a plea submitted by Param Bir Singh, a former commissioner of the Mumbai Police.

Based on this CBI FIR, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) filed a case against Deshmukh under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) for money laundering offences, and he was arrested in November 2021. He was placed under ED custody, and the High Court prolonged that detention until November 15. He was then placed in judicial custody, where he is still today.

The CBI later caught Deshmukh in the first week of April of this year. He was held by the CBI till April 16 before being presented to the custody of the court.

After having his bail request denied by a special PMLA Court, Deshmukh applied for regular bail before the High Court in March 2022. The ED responded in April 2022, stating Deshmukh had failed to explain the source of enormous wealth and the profits of crime.