New Delhi, Sep 6 (Agency) The Supreme Court on Friday directed the release of Bhushan Steel’s former promoter Neeraj Singal in a money laundering case arising from an alleged bank fraud of around Rs 46,000 crore, saying that due procedure was not followed by the agency in arresting him. A bench comprising Justice Manoj Misra and Justice S V N Bhatti asked the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to release Singal as the probe agency had not cited and supplied any papers justifying the grounds of arrest in writing at the time of arrest. The Supreme Court had earlier issued notice to the ED and sought its response in the case.
Singal had appealed against Delhi High Court’s January 8 order by which his bail plea and petition challenging his arrest were dismissed. The High Court had said the Supreme Court’s decision, which mandated supply of the grounds of arrest in writing at the time of arrest, was passed after Singal was apprehended in the case. The arrest, therefore, could not be said to be illegal. The High Court had said that at the time of his arrest, an oral communication of the grounds of arrest was communicated to Singal and proper compliance of the provisions of Section 19(1) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) was adhered to. Singal, also an ex-managing director of Bhushan Steel, was arrested on June 9, 2023.