Supreme Court Directs AIIMS Medical Board To Assess Punjab Minister Sanjeev Arora's Health On Bail Plea In PMLA Case

The Supreme Court on Monday directed that Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA and Punjab Cabinet Minister Sanjeev Arora be shifted from Fortis Hospital in Gurugram to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi.

The court asked a Medical Board at AIIMS to examine his health and submit its report within two days. Arora has sought interim bail in an Enforcement Directorate case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), citing serious cardiac ailments.

A bench of Justices Satish Chandra Sharma and Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh passed the direction after taking note of submissions that Arora required an independent medical evaluation.

The bench ordered, "Keeping in view the submission made by the learned Additional Solicitor General, the Director, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi is requested to constitute a Medical Board and to submit a report before this Court within two days from today. The concerned Jail Superintendent is directed to make all endeavours to have the petitioner shifted to All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi for medical examination today itself."

Arora's regular bail plea was rejected by the Special PMLA Court on June 15. He thereafter moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which sought a status report from the Enforcement Directorate and listed the matter for hearing on August 5.

Appearing for Arora, Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi submitted that the petitioner was suffering from multiple serious ailments, including diabetes, hypertension, deep vein thrombosis, and suspected coronary artery disease.

Referring to the report of the Medical Superintendent of the District Civil Hospital, Gurugram, he said cardiologists had advised an urgent coronary angiography to rule out significant coronary artery disease.

Reading from the medical records, Rohatgi submitted, "The medical doctor says the man is dying."

He argued that the District Civil Hospital lacked facilities for advanced cardiac investigations and emergency cardiac interventions, including coronary angiography and angioplasty. Seeking an independent evaluation, he requested that Arora be examined by a Medical Board constituted by AIIMS.

Stressing the urgency of the situation, Rohatgi submitted, "He should be taken urgently because he might just need surgery today... He was gasping... All arteries are blocked."

Appearing for the Enforcement Directorate, Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju opposed the plea for interim medical bail. He referred to the same medical records to submit that they described Arora as "hemodynamically stable" and on regular medication.

However, when the bench suggested an independent examination by AIIMS, Raju said he had no objection to Arora being examined by a medical board constituted by the institute.

Accepting the suggestion, the court directed that Arora be shifted to AIIMS for examination and asked the Medical Board to submit its report within two days before the matter is taken up further.

The case arises out of the Enforcement Directorate's investigation into alleged money laundering involving Hampton Sky Realty Ltd. (HSRL), where Arora was the promoter and former Chairman and Managing Director.

According to the agency, the company orchestrated bogus mobile phone exports worth about ₹102.5 crore to two UAE-based entities through shell suppliers and forged invoices to generate proceeds of crime.

Background

The dispute arose after the Enforcement Directorate arrested Punjab Cabinet Minister Sanjeev Arora on May 9, 2026 in a money laundering case arising out of an ECIR registered on the basis of a predicate FIR alleging bogus exports of mobile phones, fake invoices, GST fraud and laundering of alleged proceeds of crime. The ED alleged that Arora the promoter and former Chairman and Managing Director of Hampton Sky Realty Ltd (HSRL), orchestrated exports worth about ₹102.5 crore to two UAE based entities using shell suppliers and forged invoices to generate unlawful gains.

Seeking regular bail before the Special PMLA Court at Gurugram, Arora contended that the exports were genuine, had been cleared by Customs, the alleged proceeds of crime had not been established, and that the ED had arrested him without sufficient incriminating material. The ED opposed the plea maintaining that the investigation had unearthed fake supplier entities, accommodation entries and bogus invoices and that the twin conditions for bail under the PMLA were not satisfied.

On June 15, 2026, the Special Court rejected Arora's bail plea, holding that the material collected by the ED disclosed a prima facie case of money laundering and that the Court could not record satisfaction under Section 45 of the PMLA that he was not guilty of the offence. It also observed that the investigation was at a crucial stage and that releasing him on bail could prejudice the probe and enable tampering with evidence.

Subsequently, Arora moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court challenging the Special Court's order. On July 7, 2026, the High Court sought a status report from the Enforcement Directorate and adjourned the matter to August 5, 2026 for further consideration.