IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.54140 of 2025 Arising Out of PS. Case No.-8 Year-2023 Thana- E.C.I.R (GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL)

District- Patna ======================================================

Bidyanand Singh S/o Late Jagdeo Prasad Singh R/o Mohalla, House No.11, Adarsh Vihar Colony Road No.1, Ram Krishna Nagar, New Jaganpura, P.S.-

Ram Krishna Nagar, Distt.- Patna ... ... Petitioner/s Versus The Union of India through The Assistant Director, Directorate of Enforcement, Patna Zonal Office, Bihar ... ... Opposite Party/s ======================================================

Appearance :

For the Petitioner/s : Mr. N.K. Agrawal, Sr. Advocate Mr. Kaushal Kishor, Advocate Ms. Jyoti Kumari, Advocate Mr. Kumar Rajdeep, Advocate Mr. Saroj Kumar Choudhary, Advocate For the E.D. : Mr. Tuhin Shankar, Advocate ====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ASHOK KUMAR PANDEY CAV ORDER

7 29-01-2026 Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned counsel for the Directorate of Enforcement.

2. The petitioner has prayed for bail in connection with Special Trial (PMLA) Case No. 04 of 2025 arising out of ECIR No- PTZO/08/2023 registered for the offence punishable under Sections 3 and 4 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.

3. The prosecution case in brief is that E.D.

Investigation under PMLA has been initiated by recording a ECIR/PTZO/08/2023 dated 23.01.2023. Two FIRs (RC0232020A0002 dated 30.01.2020 & RC0232020A0003 dated 30.01.2020) have been lodged by CBI, ACB, Patna regarding mass scale irregularity/criminality in the death claim cases filed, processed and decided at Railway Claims Tribunal, Patna (RCT) against unknown public servants of Railway, the petitioner and others under Section 120-B, 420 of the IPC and Section 7A of PC Act. As per the FIRs, during the period 2015 to 2017, unknown public servants of Railway conspired with claimant’s advocates Kumari Rinki Sinha, the petitioner and their team. In pursuance of the said criminal conspiracy, in accidental death claim cases, only a part of the decreed amount, actually awarded to the claimants, was received by the claimants and major chunk was siphoned off by the conspiratos. Altogether 2436 decree cases out of 2636 cases, were disposed during the tenure of single member bench of Shri. R.K.Mittal, Hon’ble member judicial, RCT, Patna In 18 months with average of 135 decree approx per month, whereas prior to that this average was around 56 between April, 2014 to September 2015. In these orders issued by Shri R.K. Mittal it was directed that the applicant would sumbit details of bank account duly verified by the conducting lawyer. Accordingly, in pursuance of the said criminal conspiracy said advocates and their team advocates opened new bank accounts for payment of compensation. Bank accounts of these claimants were either opened in PNB, Hilsa Branch; PNB, Mali Branch; PNB, Phulwarisharif Branch; Allahabad Bank, Patrakar Nagar Branch and Madhya Bihar Gramin Bank, Lalganj Nalanda Branch where the branch Managers were known to the petitioner and their team advocates. The account opening forms withdrawal slips, KYC documents etc. were got signed by the applicants as per the instructions from conducting advocates. These documents were opened in absence of the account holders.

4. As per the mandate, the decretal amount was credited in respective bank accounts of the claimants. In most of the cases, the claimants were aware of the new bank accounts in which the decretal amount was credited. After credit of the decreed amount, a major part of the compensation was transferred to the bank account of advocates or their close relatives. On later date, a part of the compensation was given by the advocates to the claimants as per their sweet will and convenience.

5. During the course of investigation under PMLA, 2002, information regarding the decrees and execution orders issued by Shri R.K. Mittal, the then Member (