Unitech ex-promoters get bail from Delhi court
The Chandra brothers will remain in jail as they are yet to get bail in a PMLA case
3 min read
The Unitech promoters were represented by counsel Vishal Gosain, Anuroop Chakravarti and Sushil Bajaj. (Representational Photo)A Delhi court Saturday granted bail to former Unitech promoters Sanjay Chandra and Ajay Chandra in a case registered against them by the Economic Offences Wing (EoW) for allegedly siphoning homebuyers’ money.
However, the Chandra brothers, who have been in prison since 2017, are unlikely to come out of Mumbai’s Arthur Road and Taloja jails as they are yet to get bail in a PMLA case being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
The duo was initially arrested in a criminal case which started with one complaint lodged in 2015. Around 173 home buyers of Unitech projects in Gurgaon, ‘WildFlower Country’ and ‘Anthea’, also filed complaints later. Several cases were lodged by the Delhi Police, CBI and ED against them and other officials of the company.
In 2021, the ED filed a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against the Unitech Group and its promoters over allegations that the owners illegally diverted over Rs 2,000 crore to tax havens Cyprus and Cayman Islands.
In 2023, the CBI filed a new case against Unitech Limited and its former directors in connection with an alleged fraud in IDBI bank involving an amount of Rs 395 crore. They also face another CBI probe in a similar case filed against them by Canara Bank.
The Chandra brothers, who were initially in Tihar jail, were shifted to Mumbai jails at the directions of the Supreme Court after the ED claimed they were conducting business from inside prison in connivance with jail staff.
“… the fact that in all the FIRs, except the PMLA case as informed, the applicants are already on bail, in my confirmed opinion, the case is now made out for grant of regular bail to the applicants,” noted Additional Sessions Judge Navjeet Budhiraja while granting the accused bail.
The court also noted that “in the instant case”, the applicants had already suffered incarceration for more than six years, and “their examination would take substantial time” as “the number of witnesses cited by the prosecution being more than 240”. It also noted that one of the “offences invoked herein (is) the offence under section 420 IPC which prescribes maximum punishment up to 7 years”.
The Unitech promoters were represented by counsel Vishal Gosain, Anuroop Chakravarti and Sushil Bajaj.
You May Like
Photos
