Maharashtra Minister Nawab malik Remanded to ED Custody Till March 3

Cabinet Minister of Maharashtra and Nationalist Congress Party (India) leader Nawab Malik has been remanded by Enforcement Directorate to the custody till March 3 in a money laundering case.  

The Enforcement Directorate had detained him earlier yesterday for alleged property because he was found dealing with family members of fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim.

 The NCB leader and second Maharashtra Minister Nawab Malik, to be arrested by a central probe agency in four months. He shared a land deal linked to terrorist Dawood Ibrahim.

As per the ED [Enforcement Directorate] claims, Nawab Malik takes hold of property in Mumbai’s Kurla. The property costs ₹ 300 crores by paying just ₹ 55 lakh in 2005, with the support of Haseena Parkar, Dawood Ibrahim’s sister, and two associates.   

Previously, the National Investigation Agency registered a case at odds of Dawood Ibrahim and his associates for alleged terror financing by way of hawala networks. There was no FIR in the land grab case; the ED noted the case and started a money-laundering probe. 

The ED [Enforcement Directorate] looks into money laundering linked to the Underworld. The ED had carried out multiple raids other than filing cases against the Underworld. In the last week, in the case, Iqbal Kaskar, Dawood Ibrahim’s brother, was also arrested. 

In the court then 

Before Special Judge Rahul Rokade in the Mumbai Sessions Court yesterday evening,  ED produced him for initiating the legal process.

The Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh, proceeding on behalf of the ED, sought for 15(fifteen) days custody. The remand request was opposed by Senior Advocate Amit Desai, appearing for Malik.  

 FIR was registered against Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar on Feb 3, 2022,  the ASG submitted that before the Bench. ED also in the statement stated that, Malik is involved in money laundering and various terror activities.

It’s also put forth that the Malik is also indulged in unauthorised acquisition of properties in order to create terror funds.  

Haseena Parker was Dawood’s sister who has passed away. She was controlling Malik’s acts here. The property was an ancestral property. After the demise of the parents she inherited the property and became the sole owner of the property.

Her statement was recorded in the process. Haseena Parkar had an associate named as Salim Patel who was given power of attorney to not to sell the land and remove encroachments.

There was no authorisation for Munira and her sister to sell their rights in the property.  She told that she came to know from media reports about the property been sold. 

It was submitted by Senior Advocate Amit Desai that the transactions was relate to 1999, i.e. 4 years before the PMLA was enacted and because of which, the case is bared by Article 20(2) of the Constitution, which prohibits retrospective application of criminal law.  

It was also submitted before the court that the guidelines of arrest as laid down in the Supreme Court judgment in Arnesh Kumar case were bypassed and violated in the case and Section 41A CrPC has been ignored and therefore the process of arrest stands void.

It was further submitted that Section 41A CrPC has no application in this case as The Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 is a complete code in itself with superseding effect over CrPC.

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Published By: Jaspreet Singh

Edited By: Kritika Kashyap