Money laundering cases: SC adjourns hearing on Abhishek Banerjee's plea to July 10
Mar 20, 2024
New Delhi [India], March 20 : The Supreme Court on Wednesday adjourned the July 10 hearing on TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee's plea challenging Enforcement Directorate summons in the money laundering cases.
A bench of justices, Bela M. Trivedi and Pankaj Mithal, adjourned the hearing to July 10. Meanwhile, the court also noted that the TMC leader, who also happens to be the nephew of TMC chief and Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, is contesting the upcoming general election.
Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal for Banerjee apprised the top court that Banerjee was last called in 2022, they are in the midst of an election and the chargesheet has been filed in the matter. He urged the court to take up the matter in July.
The TMC leader is being probed by the Enforcement Directorate in various money laundering cases. One of them is the alleged recruitment irregularities in West Bengal. The other one related to an alleged multi-crore coal pilferage scam related to Eastern Coalfields Ltd. mines in the state's Kunustoria and Kajora areas in and around Asansol.
In the meantime, while hearing a separate petition, the top court asked to place Nalini Chidambaram's medical papers on record on the next date of hearing and adjourned her plea to July 10.
Senior Counsel Kapil Sibal submitted on instructions that the appellant has recently undergone knee surgery and is not in a position to even board the flight to go to Kolkata for interrogation purposes if called by the Respondents-Directorate of Enforcement. He further submits that the Directorate of Enforcement may interrogate the appellant in Chennai, where she resides.
The Additional Solicitor General, S.V. Raju, appearing for the Directorate of Enforcement, stated that the appellant, Nalini, shall not be called for interrogation in Kolkata till the next date of hearing.
