Sanjay Raut gets bail, HC will hear ED's plea on Thursday

The Bombay high court on Wednesday refused to grant any urgent stay on the bail granted to Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut by a special court in connection with a money laundering case. 

A single-judge bench of Justice Bharati Dangre refused to grant such an urgent stay noting that it cannot pass such an order when bail is granted, without first hearing both parties.

"I have not even looked at the order. I don't know on what grounds the bail has been granted. I don't know on what grounds you (ED) have challenged the order. How can I grant a stay now without even hearing the parties...even if I have to make a prima facie order now," Justice Dangre said.

The bench said it would hear ED's application seeking cancellation of the bail granted on Thursday.

"If after hearing, I pass an order cancelling the bail then the accused persons can be taken back in custody," Justice Dangre said.

Earlier in the day, Raut and another accused Pravin Raut were granted bail by the special court which refused an application filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) seeking the court to stay the effect of the order till Friday.

The ED then moved the high court and sought an interim stay on the bail order.

The special court rejected the Enforcement Directorate's plea urging it not to give effect to the bail order till Friday, paving the way for the release of Rajya Sabha member Raut, who was arrested on July 31 this year and is currently in judicial custody and lodged at the Arthur Road Jail in Mumbai.

The ED then said it would approach the Bombay High Court seeking cancellation of the bail order and an interim order for a stay on the same, even as a lawyer of Raut said they will try to complete the formalities by Wednesday evening to facilitate his release from the prison.

The special court also granted bail to the parliamentarian's associate and co-accused Pravin Raut.

The ED had arrested Sanjay Raut for his alleged role in financial irregularities in connection with the redevelopment of the Patra Chawl (row tenement) in suburban Goregaon.

The Sena MP had in his bail plea claimed the case against him was a perfect example of "abuse of power" and "political vendetta".

However, the central probe agency had opposed the politician's plea, saying he played a major role in the money laundering case related to the Patra Chawl redevelopment and acted "behind the curtains" to avoid the money trail.

The ED's probe pertains to alleged financial irregularities in the redevelopment of the Patra Chawl and related financial transactions involving Sanjay Raut's wife and associates.

Siddharth Nagar, popularly known as the Patra Chawl, in Goregaon is spread over 47 acres and houses 672 tenant families.

In 2008, the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA), a government agency, assigned a redevelopment contract for the Chawl to Guru Ashish Construction Private Limited (GACPL), a sister company of the Housing Development and Infrastructure Ltd (HDIL).

The GACPL was supposed to build 672 flats for the tenants and also give some flats to MHADA. It was free to sell the remaining land to private developers.

But the tenants did not get a single flat in the last 14 years as the company did not redevelop the Patra Chawl and sold land parcels and Floor Space Index (FSI) to other builders for Rs 1,034 crore, as per the ED played a major role in the money laundering case.