Delhi Court allows ED to examine former DMK leader Jaffer Sadiq in Tihar Jail

New Delhi [India], June 23 (ANI): Delhi’s Patiala House Court has once again granted permission to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to question former DMK leader Jaffer Sadiq in Tihar Jail and record his statement under PMLA. The agency wants to interrogate him in a drug-related money laundering case.

Special NDPS Judge Sudhir Kumar Sirohi on June 20 granted permission to ED to examine Jaffer Sadiq on June 25 and 26 and to record his statement under section 50 of PMLA.

The Court has directed the jail authorities to make necessary arrangements.

The special public prosecutor (SPP) for ED N K Matta submitted that the ED officers may be allowed to examine the accused. They may be permitted to take the laptop and printer with them so that the recorded statements may be signed and data may be confronted to the accused persons as there is recovery of 50kg of Pseudoephedrine.

It was also submitted that the accused was examined on May 8-10, but the investigation could not be completed.

Earlier on May 1, the court also granted permission to the ED to record the statements of Jaffer Sadiq and four others in Tihar Jail.

The Enforcement Directorate, through Special Public Prosecutor NK Matta, had moved an application praying for permission to examine and record the statements of the accused persons, namely Jaffer Sadiq, Mukesh PU, Mujeepur Rahaman R, Ashok Kumar and SG Sadanandan (Sathanantham) u/s 50 PML Act, 2002 for 03 days i.e. from May 8, 2024 to May 10, 2024.

Noted the submissions, Special Judge Sudhir Kumar Sirohi allowed ED to examine the accused persons and also granted liberty to ED officials to carry their laptops, printers and other required items for recording the statements of the above-mentioned accused persons.

ED had conducted raids at various sites in Tamil Nadu as part of an investigation into drug-related money laundering involving former DMK member Jaffer Sadiq and others.

The move came a month after the ED registered a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against Sadiq, who was earlier arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) for his alleged involvement in an international drug trafficking case. ED registered its case against Sadiq, a day after the NCB arrested him.

As per official sources, the financial fraud probe agency registered the case against the former DMK functionary after the NCB found Sadiq’s links with some “high profile” people.

In its inquiry, the NCB found that Sadiq spearheaded the network that sourced pseudoephedrine in India and trafficked it to Australia, New Zealand and Malaysia under the guidance of food-grade cargo.

Officials in NCB believe that the drug syndicate operated by Sadiq had sent 45 consignments over the three years to various countries, approximately 3,500 kilograms of pseudoephedrine.