Patna HC’s jail relief for MLC Ritlal in money laundering case

PATNA: The Patna high court on Tuesday granted relief to MLC Ritlal Yadav in a money laundering case, ruling that he can’t be kept in jail anymore as the lawmaker is behind bars for more than seven years, which is the maximum sentence under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
A criminal writ petition was filed before the HC on May 8 this year seeking his release on the grounds that he had already served a term more than the maximum sentence possible for money laundering.
The Enforcement Directorate had registered a money laundering case against Yadav in early 2012 while he is lodged in Beur central jail since October 4, 2009.
A bench of Justice Shivaji Pandey and Justice Partha Sarthy had reserved the order on June 1, which was pronounced on Tuesday.
SD Sanjay, who had appeared for the Centre as well as ED in the case in capacity of additional solicitor general, had opposed the petition on grounds that the accused has already moved court seeking bail in the case and the current petition was not maintainable.
However, senior counsel Yogesh Chandra Verma, had submitted that the petitioner was being deprived of his right to life and liberty, which is a violation of Article 20 and 21 of Constitution, by being kept behind bars even when his incarceration period has crossed the limit of seven years.
The senior counsel said the ED had registered a money laundering case against Yadav on the basis of seven criminal cases. “ED had alleged that he had amassed property from proceeds of crime in these seven case. But he had been already acquitted in five of these cases,” he added.
Verma said they had also submitted that at present no cases are pending against MLC for which he needs to be kept behind bars. “He had been granted bail in rest of the cases,” he said.
Verma said even if court finds him guilty for money laundering later, he would have to be set off as he had already served imprisonment more that sentence period.
The MLC was twice granted parole for 15 days since October 2009, including once in February this year, for attending his daughter’s marriage.