Doubting the very premise of money laundering,to probe which the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had sought the custody of Hasan Ali Khan,a special court on Friday granted bail to the businessman who is alleged to be Indias biggest money launderer and tax evader. It was difficult to believe Khan had any role to play in money laundering,the judge said. Pulling up the ED for the second time,Special Judge M L Tahaliyani said there was no material to show that any scheduled offence connected to the present activity (crime of money laundering) was committed by the accused (Khan) or his accomplices. Khan was given bail against a surety of Rs 75,000 and two personal bonds of Rs 40,000 each. He was told to be available in Mumbai for the next five days for questioning. The ED failed to produce authenticated documents before the court. Even the Reserve Bank of India could have authenticated the documents for you. The investigating agency has not authenticated even the documents they claim to be notarised in London, Tahaliyani said. The judge was not satisfied with the EDs arguments on a notarised document bearing Khans signature that linked him to Saudi arms dealer Adnan Kashoggi. The court has arrived at the conclusion that the agency has relied heavily on some 400 documents which is submitted from a source. These documents submitted by the ED are contradictory from another set of documents presented before the court. It doesnt lead that he (Khan) held those accounts, the judge said,pointing to the allegation that Khan had two bank accounts in UBS Zurich with a balance of $8 billion,and his wife Reema had an account in the same bank. The judge observed that Khans various foreign bank account details presented to the court were contradictory,and did not prove that he held those accounts. I am not saying these accounts dont belong to him,but it is difficult to prove it is of Khan, Tahaliyani said. The documents allegedly found at Khans home in Pune could have been created to impress Khans Kolkata-based alleged accomplice Kashinath Tapuriah,the judge observed. It seems that Tapuriah wanted heavy loans for reviving his sick industrial unit and Khan created false documents to impress him. After two days of marathon arguments,the court had set Friday for its ruling. But in the morning,it raised several issues of credibility of information,sources and documents that the agency claimed to have collected since 2007. What is the progress made in the case ever since (2007), Tahaliyani asked. The court rubbished the EDs claim that Khan had transferred $7 lakh from his account in Sarasin Bank,Switzerland,to S K Financial Services Barclays Bank account,and that this information was confirmed by the US Justice Department. There is no material to say that Khan gave such instructions, Tahaliyani said in his order. The EDs senior counsel Rajeev Awasthi,who was flown down from Delhi to salvage the agencys case,had argued that Khan had allegedly written to UBS Zurich to transfer funds from his two accounts. But another document showed that these accounts were not operated and no money was deposited. These submissions are contradictory, the judge said. The court,while dictating the order,said that documents showed that of the three accounts,two in Khans name were non-operative,and the third,in his wife Reemas name,had over $6 lakh. But the bank was not satisfied with their credentials and soon closed the account. Ridiculing submissions made by the prosecution on Thursday that it had 16 confidential documents about Khan in its possession,Tahaliyani said,I found these documents on online encyclopaedia Wikipedia. The court said there was no material to show that Khan committed a scheduled offence,a requirement to invoke the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The only criminal offence registered against Khan is forgery of documents for obtaining multiple passports in Mumbai and Patna. I think this is stretching too much to fit into the scheme of PMLA, Tahaliyani said.
