Delhi HC issues notice to ED on Jacqueline’s plea seeking quashing of complaint

Jacqueline Fernandez challenged the ED's complaint and the second supplementary charge sheet dated August 17, 2022 under Sections 3 and 4 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Thursday issued a notice to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on a petition by Bollywood actress Jacqueline Fernandez seeking to quash a money laundering case registered against her by the agency.

She has challenged the ED’s complaint and the second supplementary charge sheet dated August 17, 2022 under Sections 3 and 4 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. Appearing for the central probe agency, special counsel Zoheb Hossian opposed the petition citing its maintainability, and said that when there is no challenge to the order of cognizance taken by the special judge, challenge to the prosecution complaint is not maintainable. Fernandez’s counsel Senior Advocate Siddharth Aggarwal argued that the prayers in the petition covers every order passed in the criminal proceedings and that the order of cognizance has got nothing to do with her.

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Hearing the matter for a brief time, Justice Jyoti Singh issued notice and sought ED’s reply in the matter while listing it for hearing next on January 29. It is Fernandez’s case that the evidence presented by the ED will establish her innocence, portraying her as a victim of alleged conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar’s targeted attack. The petition strongly denies any involvement on her part in aiding Chandrashekhar to launder allegedly ill-gotten wealth. Fernandez has argued that she should not be prosecuted under Sections 3 and 4 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. The ED had filed its second supplementary charge sheet naming her as an accused. Fernandez and another Bollywood personality, Nora Fatehi, have recorded their statements as witnesses in the case. Earlier, assets and fixed deposits worth Rs 7.2 crore belonging to Fernandez were attached by the ED, which termed these gifts and properties as “proceeds” of crime received by the actor.

In February, the ED had filed its first supplementary charge sheet against Pinky Irani, an alleged aide of Chandrashekhar, who introduced him to Bollywood actors. It had been alleged in the charge sheet that Pinky used to choose expensive gifts for Fernandez and drop them at her residence after Chandrashekhar made the payments. In December 2021, the probe agency had filed the first charge sheet in this matter. As per official sources, Chandrashekhar has spent around Rs 20 crore on different models and Bollywood celebrities. A few had, however, refused to accept gifts from him.