A day after the Bengal election ended, I-PAC co-founder Vinesh Chandel received bail from a Delhi sessions court on Thursday with the ED not opposing his bail plea.
Chandel had been arrested in a money-laundering case amid an ED crackdown on I-PAC — Trinamool’s poll strategist — that prompted the political consultancy to suspend its Bengal operations days before the first phase of voting.
It’s rare for the ED not to oppose the bail application of an accused. Besides, such relief in money-laundering cases comes usually from a higher court.
At the bail hearing, special public prosecutor Simon Benjamin, representing the ED, submitted that Chandel had cooperated during the investigation and provided useful leads.
Section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act says bail can only be granted if there are reasonable grounds to believe that the accused is not guilty of the offence and is not likely to commit any offence while on bail.
“As the ED is not opposing the present bail application… and without commenting on the merits of the case, the applicant/ accused Vinesh Kumar Chandel is admitted to bail,” additional sessions judge Amit Bansal said.
Political controversy had clouded the ED’s crackdown on I-PAC long before the agency arrested Chandel on April 13, just 10 days before the Bengal elections began.
In January, chief minister Mamata Banerjee had stormed into the Calcutta venues of raids by two ED teams – on the home of another I-PAC co-founder, Pratik Jain, and the company’s office in Salt Lake – alleging a political conspiracy by the BJP.
She accused the central agency of trying to seize her party’s election data and documents. The ED filed a case before the Supreme Court accusing Mamata of snatching incriminating material.
Chandel has to furnish a personal bail bond of ₹2 lakh with a surety of the same amount. He must join the investigation whenever required and not leave India without permission, among other bail conditions.
Senior counsel Vikas Pahwa appeared for Chandel at Thursday’s hearing