Moser Baer case: ED challenges bail granted to Nitin Bhatnagar, High Court issues notice

New Delhi [India], May 2 (ANI): The Delhi High Court on Wednesday issued notice in a plea of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) challenging the bail granted to Maltese citizen Nitin Bhatnagar in a money laundering case related to Moser Baer.

He was granted regular bail by the Rouse Avenue court.

Justice Navin Chawla issued notice to Nitin Bhatnagar and granted him the liberty to file a reply. The matter was listed for July 24.

During the hearing, special counsel Zoheb Hossain appeared for ED. He sought a direction to stay on the hearing of the Application filed by Nitin Bhatnagar seeking permission to travel abroad, pending before the trial court.

Justice Chawla observed that the Learned Trial Court can consider the application seeking permission to travel abroad in accordance with law without getting influenced by the pendency of the cancellation plea of the ED in the high court.

However, it was pointed out that Nitin Bhatnagar will inform the High Court before leaving the country if permission is granted by the trial court.

Senior advocate Vikas Pahwa appeared for Nitin Bhatnagar.

On November 20, 2023, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a prosecution complaint (charge sheet) against Nitin Bhatnagar in connection with his alleged involvement in the offence of Money Laundering in the case of Moser Baer India Ltd. and others.

Bhatnagar was arrested by the ED on August 22, 2023.

Lawyers who appeared for Bhatnagar earlier submitted that accused/applicant is a citizen of Malta, whereas his father lives in Delhi and his arrest was ‘not legal’ as no permission was there to further investigate the case. Bhatnagar was was neither named in the FIR (of the Scheduled Offence) nor in the ECIR of the present ED case nor his name does appear in the Prosecution Complaints.

He was arrested at the airport on August 22, 2023, while he was going to board a flight to return home.

According to ED, the investigation was initiated against Moser Baer India Ltd. and others under the provisions of PMLA, 2002, on the basis of an FIR on August 17, 2019, registered by the CBI under various sections of the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.

The account of Moser Baer India Ltd. was declared fraudulent by the complainant bank on April 20, 2019 and the loan amount was syphoned off by the directors, namely Ratul Puri (nephew of Congress leader Kamalnath) and his family members.

As per the ED, Nitin Bhatnagar helped in the opening of a bank account in April 2011 in the name of Pristine River Investments Limited in the Bank of Singapore.

Pristine River Investments Limited was a Dubai based investment holding company, on the direction of Ratul Puri. The entity, Pristine River Investments Limited, was fully owned by the Savannah Trust. Ratul Puri was the settler of the Savannah Trust.

ED investigation revealed that Pristine River Investments Limited received the proceeds of crime amounting to USD 14.18 million from UHY Saxena, Mercon Commodities and Midas Metals International, entities that were managed and controlled by Rajiv Saxena.

According to the ED, Rajiv Saxena is a hawala operator and an accommodation entry provider who runs an accommodation entry business in Dubai, who has laundered proceeds of crime for Moser Baer India Limited. He has created structures for laundering the proceeds of crime generated by Ratul Puri and his family members.

ED further said that an investigation has revealed that the account of Pristine River Investments Limited has been used for the layering of proceeds of crime and Nitin Bhatnagar was actively involved in the layering of these proceeds of crime for the main accused, Ratul Puri. Earlier, ED, in this case, arrested the businessman, Ratul Puri in the year 2019.

Further, during the investigation, Rajiv Saxena, the hawala operator and Rajiv Aggarwal, a close associate of Ratul Puri, were arrested in 2021 and prosecution complaints have already been filed against these accused persons. Property amounting to USD 47.95 million has already been attached in this case, stated the ED.