SC grants interim bail to Gujarat journalist in money laundering case

The Supreme Court on Monday granted interim bail to Gujarat journalist Mahesh Langa in a money laundering case linked to an alleged financial fraud lodged by the Enforcement Directorate at Ahmedabad.

Ordering day-to-day trial in the case by a special court, a Bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant asked Langa not to seek adjournments in the hearing and not to write any articles in the newspaper about the pending case against him.

If there was any violation of the order, it may consider cancellation of the bail, the Bench cautioned him.

On behalf of the Enforcement Directorate, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta opposed Langa’s bail, saying a journalist extorting money was a serious offence and the accused did not deserve bail.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal submitted on behalf of the journalist that he had not committed a murder and that he was languishing in jail since October last year.

The Bench will take up the matter on January 6 when it will peruse the ED’s status report on the compliance of the bail conditions by Langa.

The charges are yet to be framed in the case, in which the ED has made nine witnesses.

On July 31, the Gujarat High Court rejected Langa’s bail plea in the money laundering case on the grounds that if released on bail, prejudice would be caused to the prosecution case.

On February 25, the ED said it arrested Langa in a money laundering investigation linked to an alleged financial fraud. He was first arrested in October 2024 in a GST fraud case.

The PMLA case against Langa stems from two FIRs filed by Ahmedabad police on charges of fraud, criminal misappropriation, criminal breach of trust, cheating and causing wrongful loss of lakhs of rupees to certain people.