SC refuses to grant bail to accused in money laundering case related to Yes Bank scam

New Delhi, Jan 13 (PTI) The Supreme Court Friday refused to entertain the bail plea of Naresh T Jain, the internal auditor of travel firm Cox & Kings India and its group companies, who is in jail in connection with a money laundering case related to the Rs 3,642-crore Yes Bank scam.

According to the Enforcement Directorate, the travel group had availed loans to the tune of Rs 3,642 crore from Yes Bank using manipulated finance statements and balance sheets and then diverted the money and siphoned it.

The sanctioning of loans was driven by Yes Bank founder and then MD and CEO Rana Kapoor by defying norms, the anti-money laundering agency claimed.

A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justice P S Narasimha took note of the submissions of senior advocate Siddharth Dave, appearing for Jain who is in custody since October 5, 2020, and said that at this stage, it was not inclined to grant bail.

“Having perused the material which has been placed on record and the counter-affidavit filed by the Enforcement Directorate, we are not inclined to entertain the special leave petition (SLP) at this stage.

“However, we direct that ED shall take all necessary steps to ensure that it cooperates with the trial judge in expedition and early conclusion of the trial. If no substantial steps are taken in the trial by May 31, 2023, we permit the petitioner (Jain) to apply for bail afresh before the (Bombay) high court,” it ordered.

The ED had registered an ECIR (Enforcement Case Information Report) on March 7, 2020 against Rana Kapoor, the then CEO of Yes Bank, and others.

Jain was summoned by the ED on June 8, 2020 and later arrested.

The bail plea of Jain was rejected by trial court on December 9, 2020 and the high court also did not grant the relief.