Money laundering charges framed against Bhola

Manish Sirhindi

Tribune News Service

Patiala, July 22

The special CBI court today framed charges against drug lord Jagdish Bhola under Section 4 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) for using the proceeds of crime to buy properties.

During the arguments, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had pressed charges against Jagdish Bhola under Sections 3 and 4 of the Act.

The ED had produced eight sale deeds before the court claiming that a sum of Rs 1 crore had exchanged hands in these property transactions, which the ED claimed was the proceeds of the crime committed by Bhola.

However, defence counsel Satish Karkare challenged the charges. He claimed that the sale deeds produced by the ED had no mention of Bhola and they had not even produced any evidence to support their claim that money used in these property transactions were the proceeds from a crime.

Satish Karkare said that the ED had put on record that they would be producing the evidence in support of the charges during the next hearing.

The court, while disposing a discharge petition filed under Section 227 of the CrPC filed by his defense counsel to absolve Bhola of all the charges as there was no evidence, held that Bhola be tried under Section 4 of the PML Act.

Jagdish Bhola was present in the court during the proceedings.

ED takes possession of son’s property 

Jalandhar: Taking action against Jagdish Bhola in a case regarding the alleged violations of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, the ED on Friday took possession of a property belonging to his son Sadik Singh at Khanna. Three weeks back, two properties of the dismissed cop had been taken into possession at Fatehgarh Sahib too. Earlier in February, his two prime properties, including his plush house in Mohali, had been attached. — TNS