IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.82199 of 2025 Arising Out of PS. Case No.-5 Year-2024 Thana- E.C.I.R (GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL)

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

Ram Babu Shandilya S/o Late Gangadhar Shastri Resident of - 52/A, Lanka, P.S - Kotwali, District - Ghazipur, State - Uttar Pradesh, Pin - 233001 ... ... Petitioner/s Versus Union of India through The Deputy Director, Directorate of Enforcement, Patna Zonal Office, Bank Road, Chandpura Palace, P.S - Kotwali, District -

Patna, Pin - 800001 ... ... Opposite Party/s ======================================================

Appearance :

For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Ramakant Ram Anand, Advocate For the E.D. : Mr. Rajesh Ranjan, Advocate ====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ASHOK KUMAR PANDEY CAV ORDER

7 17-03-2026 Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned counsel for the Directorate of Enforcement.

2. The petitioner has prayed for bail in connection with Special (Trial) PMLA Case No. 02 of 2025 arising out of ECIR No. PTZO/05/2024 registered for the offence punishable under Sections 44 & 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act defined under Section 3, punishable under Section 4 and confiscation of properties under Section 8(5) of PMLA. 3. The case of the prosecution, in short, is that the petitioner was accused in one FIR No. 439 of 2023 dated 30.08.2023 registered in P.S. Kotwali, Ghazipur in connection with Poorvanchal Cooperative Bank, Ghazipur regarding fraud of Rs.30 crores. The petitioner has been made accused in ECIR No.

PTZO/05/2024 dated 18.03.2024 relying upon three FIRs, namely, 1. FIR bearing no. 933 of 2023 dated 18.11.2023 of Nagar P.S. Vaishali, under Sections 409, 420, 467, 468, 471 & 120B of the Indian Penal Court (in short ‘IPC’), 2. FIR bearing no. 629 of 2023 dated 13.03.2023 of Nagar P.S. Vaishali, under Sections 379 & 420 of the IPC and 3. FIR bearing no. 785 of 2023 dated 30.09.2023 of Nagar P.S. Vaishali, under Sections 409, 420, 467, 468 & 471 of the IPC embezzlement of public money to the tune of Rs.83.50 crores from Vaishali Shahari Vikash Co-operative Bank Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as VSV) through 383 fraud loan accounts by using fake/forged warehouse/LIC receipts and by revising of existing lending policy of the bank where various lending terms diluted including KYC compliance, CIBIL score, lending rates, loans against deposits review process, exposure limit, CC limits etc. It is further case of the prosecution that the main allegation against the petitioner is that he has been guilty of 1. Connivance with his son-in-law Vipin Tiwary in layering, laundering and concealment of Procees of Crime (in short ‘POC’) of Rs.1.62 crores generated by committing fraud in VSV Bank and 2. His denial of intimacy with Sanjeev Kumar and Nitin Mehra, which led the ground for recording ECIR/PTZO/05/2024 and reason to believe which turned into his arrest by Assistant Director, Directorate of Enforcement, Govt. of India, Patna Zonal office u/s 19 of Prevention of Money Laundering Act, before lodging complaint under the said act.

4. It has been stated that the petitioner is innocent and has been falsely implicated in this case with ulterior motive and the investigation carried out by the Enforcement Directorate is misconceived. It has further been submitted that the petitioner is an old man aged about 70 years (D.O.B. is 01.04.1955) and for last several years the petitioner is suffering from critical illness which requires intensive care, medical treatment and follow-up. It has further been submitted that the petitioner is practicing lawyer of Ghazipur Civil court, U.P. and has been the public prosecutor from advocate panel of the said court for a long time. He is also a businessman and has been filing his ITR for several years and categorically disclosed his sources of income. 5. Learned counsel for the petitioner has relied on the judgment of H