Supreme Court Refuses To Interfere With Denial Of Anticipatory Bail To Chartered Accountant In PMLA Case

The Supreme Court recently refused to interfere with the Delhi High Court's order denying anticipatory bail to chartered accountant Bhaskar Yadav in a Rs. 640 crore money laundering case linked to fraudulent investment and part-time job schemes.

“We do not find any ground to interfere with the impugned order passed by the High Court,” a Bench of Justices M.M. Sundresh and Augustine George Masih observed while dismissing Yadav's special leave petition.

The court, however, granted Yadav 10 days' time to surrender before the concerned court. It also clarified that the observations made in the High Court's order would have no bearing on regular bail proceedings.

Yadav and Ashok Kumar Sharma, both chartered accountants are accused of money laundering by the Enforcement Directorate. 

The complaint traces back to two FIRs registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation in 2023 and 2024, alleging large-scale cyber fraud through investment and part-time job schemes.

On March 28, 2024, the ED filed its complaint stating that the applicants were part of an organised syndicate operating from the Bijwasan area of Delhi.

According to the agency, victims were approached through online platforms and induced to invest money on the assurance of high returns. In some instances, initial returns were paid to gain their confidence, after which larger amounts were transferred and siphoned off.

The ED alleged that the money was channelled through multiple “mule” bank accounts arranged and controlled by the applicants and their associates. Between August and December 2023, thousands of accounts were used to layer the funds before they were uploaded onto the UAE-based platform PYYPL using Indian bank debit cards, enabling withdrawals abroad, including in Dubai, and conversion into cryptocurrency.

According to the prosecution complaint, nearly 937 bank accounts were linked through common mobile numbers and email IDs. The agency alleged that the applicants had created and managed a web of entities to facilitate these transactions.

The High Court order records that more than Rs. 65 crore was allegedly transacted by the applicants on the PYYPL platform and that multiple mobile numbers were linked to dozens of bank accounts used to upload substantial sums.

Dismissing the anticipatory bail pleas on February 2, the Delhi High Court held that offences under the PMLA constitute a distinct class of economic offences requiring strict application of the twin conditions under Section 45 of the Act. The court observed that money laundering is not an ordinary offence and involves serious consequences for the financial system.

The High Court described the case as exhibiting a “vast intricate mesh” of vertical and horizontal layering of funds, including cross-border transactions. It held that the investigation was ongoing and that custodial interrogation was necessary to unearth further layers of the alleged laundering network, including the possible involvement of bank officials.

The court also took note of the ED's allegations that electronic devices had been wiped, that officials had been assaulted during the investigation, and that there were attempts to influence complainants.

In that backdrop, it concluded that the applicants had failed to satisfy the twin conditions under Section 45 of the PMLA , namely, that there were reasonable grounds to believe they were not guilty and that they were unlikely to commit any offence while on bail.

Finding no reason to disturb that reasoning, the Supreme Court dismissed Yadav's challenge while granting him limited time to surrender, leaving it open for him to seek regular bail in accordance with law.

Click Here To Read/Download Delhi HC Judgment