Delhi court allows Kamal Nath’s nephew Ratul to travel abroad

A Delhi court has allowed former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath's nephew Ratul Puri, accused in a money laundering case connected to the purported fertiliser scam, to travel to Japan from November 16 to 25; Oman from November 25 to December 1, and Thailand from December 20 to January 4, 2025, respectively.

Judge Jitendra Singh directed Puri to submit an affidavit before the court, detailing a complete itinerary of his abroad travel and stay, along with his phone number and an email ID, before leaving the country. The judge directed him to furnish a fixed deposit receipt of Rs 25 lakh before the court. “He shall not try to tamper with the evidence or influence any witness connected with the present case while travelling abroad,” the judge said. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) raised apprehensions of Puri not returning to India if permitted to travel abroad while claiming that he could influence witnesses and tamper with the evidence. The agency said economic offences had deep-rooted conspiracies with huge loss of public funds and were required to be taken seriously besides being treated as offences affecting the entire country's economy.