The court reaffirmed the necessity of adherence to procedural safeguards under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act for arrests, emphasizing that economic offenses require a stringent judicial approach in bail considerations due to their severe societal impacts.

JUDGMENT :

Sujit Narayan Prasad, J.

Prayer:

1. The instant application has been filed under Sections 4 83 and 484 of the Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 praying for grant of bail in connection with ECIR Case No. 05 of 2025 arising out of ECIR No. ECIR/RZNO/18/2024 dated 23.09.2024 for the offence under Section 3 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 [hereinafter referred to as PML Act, 2002] punishable under Section 4 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, based on the Complaint Case Nos.678 of 2024, 1280 of 2024 and 1281 of 2024 before the learned Court of Economic Offences, Jamshedpur under section 132 of the CGST Act, 2017 read with Sections 20 of the IGST, read with Sections 3 4, 120A, 193, 195A, 201, 203, 204, 406, 409, 420, 465, 467, 468 and 471 of the INDIAN PENAL CODE , pending in the court of learned Special Judge CBI- cum- PML Act, Ranchi.

Factual Matrix of the Case

2. An ECIR bearing No. ECIR/RZNO/18/2024 was recorded on 23.09.2024 based on the Complaint Case Nos.678 of 2024, 1280 of 2024 and 1281 of 2024 before the learned Court of Economic Offences, Jamshedpur against the petitioner and other persons. Subsequently, the prosecuting agency, i.e., the Directorate of Enforcement while observing that Sections 420 , 467 and 471 of the INDIAN PENAL CODE are scheduled offences under Part-A, Paragraph 1 of the PML Act, 2002 initiated the investigation under Prevention of the Money Laundering Act, 2002 by registering Enforcement Case Information Report having ECIR bearing No. ECIR/RZNO/18/2024 dated 23.09.2024.

3. The petitioner was arrested on 08.04.2024, by the officers of the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (hereinafter referred as DGGSTI) from the residential house at Kolkata and was produced before the learned Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Alipore at Kolkata and a transit remand was sought for, from the learned Trial Court at Kolkata for alleged offences of inadmissible/irregular ITC extended to the end-availers, leading to the loss of Rs. 303.47 Crores to the Government Exchequer and in terms of the chart appended to the transit remand petition.

4. Based upon the said application made for transit remand, the petitioner was allowed to be taken to the State of Jharkhand by the Officers of Directorate General of GST Intelligence, Regional Unit, Jamshedpur, to be produced before the Civil Court of Competent Jurisdiction at Jharkhand.

5. Further, on 09.04.2024, a complaint petition vide Complaint Case No. 1281 of 2024 was filed and it was alleged that the inadmissible/irregular ITC leading to loss to Government Exchequer is now at Rs. 522.91 crores, however, keeping the figure of the alleged amount over the petitioner to the tune of Rs. 1.50 Crores and based upon the same, the petitioner was sent to judicial custody vide order dated 09.04.2024.

6. Subsequently, Final Prosecution Report was filed by the DGGSTI and consequently, the Ld. Trial Court was pleased to take cognizance of offences under Sections 132 (1)(i) to (iv) read with 132(4) and (5) of the Central Goods and Service Tax Act, 2017 and also under Sections 201 , 204, 420, 465, 467, 468 and 471 of the INDIAN PENAL CODE , 1860.

7. It is averred that thereafter the petitioner approached the learned Trial Court for grant of regular bail but the same was rejected and aggrieved thereof, the petitioner regular bail application before this Hon'ble Court in B.A. No. 5472 of 2024, and vide order dated 18.07.2024, this Hon'ble Court was pleased to allow the regular bail application of the petitioner, while categorically observing that the relevant evidences of the case pertains to electronic evidence and which cannot be tampered by the petitioner and other witnesses are official witnesses.

8. Since the some of the alleged offence come under the scheduled offences as stipulated in Section 2(1) (y) of the Act 2002, therefore, ED has started the investigation under Act 2002 and as per the mandate of Section 17 of the Act 2002, on 08.05.2025,