ED case against former home minister: Discharge plea of firm linked with son rejected

Premier Port Links, through Salil Deshmukh, had sought discharge, claiming that the company was “unnecessarily dragged” into the case by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The ED has alleged that transactions involving the company were linked to laundering of money allegedly received as bribes by Deshmukh from bar and hotel owners through co-accused, dismissed police officer Sachin Waze.

The plea argued that while the alleged bribery transactions pertained to 2020–21, the transactions involving the company referred to in the ED complaint dated back to 2004–07. It said the company was duly audited and that these transactions could not be remotely linked to the money laundering case. It was also submitted that from March 2010 onwards, the company had no active business, no significant cash flows, and its assets largely comprised non-income-generating agricultural land.

Opposing the plea, special public prosecutor Sunil Gonsalves argued that money laundering is a continuing offence and that loan transactions linked the company with the proceeds of crime. Accepting the ED’s contention, the court noted that the company had allegedly acquired loans worth Rs 2.20 crore from another firm in which the Deshmukh family had infused funds through share capital and subsequently acquired a 50 per cent stake for a “meagre” Rs 17.5 lakh, despite the firm having assets worth Rs 5.4 crore.

The two chartered accountants had contended that they were not beneficiaries of any transactions and had merely rendered professional services. The court, however, observed that prima facie evidence indicated that they were aware of the proceeds of crime and had assisted Deshmukh in layering the funds.

The trial in the case is yet to begin.