Equality is a myth when it comes to Crimes By Women! Yes, this is #IndiaAt75.
The Delhi High Court in its recent order affirmed,
Stringent bail conditions under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) make it difficult for an accused to get bail…Relaxations have to be given in cases where the accused is a woman or is sick.
Case:
The High Court was hearing a bail matter, where one accused named Devki Nandan Gang had approached court on medical grounds. The case pertained to Rs 3,269 Crore bank loan fraud case by Delhi-based Shakti Bhog Foods Ltd.
As per a TOI report, a bench of Justice Jasmeet Singh noted that the condition of the accused was such that he could not be taken care of inside jail.
The twin bail condition under the PMLA, which has recently been upheld by the Supreme Court, says that bail can be granted only if there are reasonable grounds for believing that the accused is not guilty; and s/he is not likely to commit any offence while on bail.
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Enumerating Section 45 and other provisions of the Act, the High Court also referred to the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the PMLA, with respect to “the sick and the infirm”, which says,
In addition to the above, recommendations of the standing committee of the central government proposes to relax the conditions prescribed for grant of bail so that the court may grant bail to a person who is below 16 years of age, or a woman, or sick or infirm…
The bench added,
A bare perusal of the Statement of Objects and Reasons of PMLA goes to show that inclusion of the above conditions for grant of bail as a proviso to Section 45(1) of the PMLA elucidates the legislature’s intent to incorporate relaxations for persons below 16 years of age; a woman; or one who is sick or infirm.
The court said that since “sick and infirm” have not been defined under the PMLA, it is for the court to examine the medical condition of an accused to come to the conclusion whether s/he deserves relaxation from the twin conditions.
While granting bail to accused in the multi-crore bank loan scam, the High Court accepted the plea of senior advocate Siddharth Luthra, who submitted that his client’s medical condition is serious enough and twin bail condition be relaxed for him as he is suffering from a kidney problem and unable to effectively remove toxicity from his body. He is also suffering from a serious heart condition in addition to other ailments.
Recently, actor Jacqueline Fernandez was granted bail by Delhi High Court in a Rs 200 crore money laundering case involving alleged conman Sukesh Chandrashekar.
The court also sought a response from Enforcement Directorate (ED) on the regular bail plea of the actor who claimed to herself a victim of circumstances.
Sick & Infirm can still be a valid ground for bail. How is leniency shown to Criminal Women justified? #GenderBiasedLaws
Leave your comments below:
PREVENTION OF MONEY LAUNDERING ACT | Bail Relaxations To Be Given If Accused Is Sick Or Woman: Delhi High Court
▪️Does @dir_ed support these #GenderBiasedLaws? #VoiceForMen #CrimeHasNoGender #SpeakUpMen @AmitShah @AmitShahOffice https://t.co/RbVG3cAyHG
— Voice For Men India (@voiceformenind) September 29, 2022
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