TAHIR HUSSAIN Vs. ASSISTANT DIRECTOR ENFORCEMENT DIRECTORATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner, Tahir Hussain, arrayed as accused No.1 in ECIR/05-STF/2020 submitted by the Directorate of Enforcement as a complaint under Ss. 44 and 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (herein after referred to as the PMLA, 2002 for the alleged commission of the offence of Money Laundering as defined under Sec. 3 read with Sec. 70 punishable under Sec. 4 of the PMLA, 2002, seeks the setting aside of the order dtd. 3/11/2022 of the Court of the learned Additional Sessions Judge-03, Shahdara, Karkardooma, in SC No. 181/2020; CNR No.-DLSH-01- 00-6179-2020 Case No. ECIR/-05-STF/2020 titled Directorate of Enforcement Vs. Tahir Hussain, whereby the orders were passed for framing of charges against the petitioner under Sec. 3 of the PMLA, 2002 punishable under Sec. 4 of the said enactment.

(2.) The respondent, the Directorate of Enforcement, was present on advance notice of the petition and exhaustive oral submissions were made on behalf of either side. Pursuant to the directions dtd. 15/11/2022 the written submissions have also been submitted on behalf of either side.A catena of verdicts has been relied upon on behalf of either side in support of their rival contentions.

(3.) The brief facts of the case sought to be asserted by the Directorate of Enforcement against the petitioner are to the effect that: FIR No. 88/2020 Police Station Dayalpur, under Ss. 307/120B/34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, qua an occurrence on the date 25/2/2020 at around 3:50 P.M. was registered wherein the complainant Ajay Goswami stated that on 25/2/2020 he had come to the house of his uncle Rakesh Sharma and it was around 3:50 P.M. when he was going to his house at Khajuri and when he reached the corner of the gali he saw a crowd of persons throwing stones and firing bullets on the main road, Karawal Nagar and these persons were committing riots and on seeing them he (Ajay Goswami) started running towards the house of his uncle and then a bullet like thing forcelyhit his right buttock and the persons who were standing there informed that between Gali No. 5 and 6 persons named Gulfam and Tanveer were firing bullets continuously and people standing there asked him to go. Inter alia, the complainant of this FIR stated that the person who picked him up had informed that many persons were firing bullets and throwing petrol bombs from the house of Tahir Hussain (the petitioner herein) and were throwing stones. FIR No. 59/2020 Police Station Crime Branch under Ss. was registered on a complaint of SI Arvind Kumar No. D-5708 who stated that a secret informer had informed him that the riots which took place in Delhi on the dates 23rd, 24th and 25/2/2020,were a well-planned conspiracy hatched by a student Umar Khalid of the JNU and his companions who were connected with various organizations together and that Umar Khalid had given inciting speeches and made appeals to the people to block the public roads during the proposed visit of the President of America on 24/2/2020 and 25/2/2020 so that a propaganda could be spread at the International level during the travel of the President of America that atrocities were being committed on the minorities in India. Inter alia, it had been stated in this FIR that under this conspiracy at many houses at Mauzpur, Kardampuri, Jafrabad, Chandbagh, Gokalpuri and Shiv Vihar and the areas around the same, fire arms, petrol bombs, acid bombs, stones catapults to throw the same and other deadly weapons were collected and at different places, the ladies and children gathered below the Jafrabad Metro Station as a part of the conspiracy on 23/2/2020 so that people living around were harassed and there was an increased tension and riots could take place. FIR No. 65/2020 Police Station DayalPur was registered on 26/2/2020 qua an incident of the date 25/2/2020 that occurred between 16:45 hrs to 18:45 hrs on the basis of a complaint made by one Mr.Ravinder Kumar s/o Man Singh r/o E-140A, Gali No.6,Khajuri Khas, DayalPur, who stated that on the main road from Bhajanpura to Karawal Nagar on Chand Bagh Pulia, an agitation against the CAA had been going on for several days in which both parties had been indulging in stone throwing and putting fire and firing with weapons. It was further stated through this FIR that the office of the then Municipal Councillor Tahir Hussain (the petitioner herein) was near the Chand Bagh Pulia and in this office he, i.e., Tahir Hussain (the petitioner herein), had gathered gunda elements and who were firing from the top of the office throwing petrol bombs and stones due to which there has been much tension and a fearful environment in the public at large. It was further stated in the said FIR that on the date 25/2/2020 Ankit Gupta, the son of the complainant, who had gone out in the evening at 5 P.M. to get some household articles did not return for much time and after making enquiries and waiting for the entire night, the missing report was lodged whereafter it was learnt that a boy had been killed and thrown in the Chand Bagh drain from the top whereafter with the assistance of the police the dead body of the complainant's son was found wearing only underwear with sharp edged weapon injuries on his head, face, chest back side, midriff with the face and other body parts having been burnt with some acid like substance in order to conceal the identification. Through this FIR it was stated by the complainant thereof that he had complete belief that Tahir Hussain (the petitioner herein) and the persons gathered in his office had committed the murder of his son and thrown him in the drain from the Masjid.