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Anoop Bartaria & Etc. vs. Dy. Director Enforcement Directorate & Anr.

SLP (Crl.) · 2023 INSC 413Decided 21 Apr 2023
SLP (Crl.) Nos. 2397-2398 of 2019
Ajay Rastogi · Bela M. Trivedi

Background

Anoop Bartaria, chairman of World Trade Park Ltd. in Jaipur, and his company sought to quash an Enforcement Directorate (ED) case and prosecution complaint alleging they received over Rs. 160 crores of tainted funds routed through fictitious firms controlled by one Bharat Bomb, who along with bank officials had defrauded Syndicate Bank of over Rs. 1,000 crores (the predicate CBI case). Bartaria argued he had only a legitimate buyer-seller relationship with Bomb, had no knowledge the money was tainted, and that the Rajasthan High Court wrongly dismissed his writ petitions (with costs of Rs. 50,000) instead of quashing the ED proceedings.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held that "knowledge" is not an indispensable precondition for the offence of money laundering under Section 3 of the PMLA: a person who is directly or indirectly involved in dealing with proceeds of crime can be guilty even without proof of specific knowledge, since the ED's complaint contained sufficient prima facie material (a fraudulent loan availed in Bartaria's name, a bank account used exclusively to receive tainted money, and proceeds routed through Bomb's fictitious firms). Applying the guidelines in State of Haryana vs. Bhajan Lal for quashing complaints, the Court found the case did not fall into any category warranting quashing, since the power under Section 482 CrPC must be used sparingly. The Court also confirmed that all PMLA offences are cognizable and non-bailable following the 2019 Finance Act explanation to Section 45, and dismissed the petitions, allowing the trial to proceed while directing that no custodial interrogation was needed since investigation was already complete.

Lesson Learnt

In money-laundering cases, mere absence of a direct role in the original (predicate) offence, or a claim of "innocent" business dealings, will not by itself get a PMLA prosecution quashed at the threshold. Courts require the accused to face trial where prima facie material shows involvement with proceeds of crime, and litigants must attach all relevant documents (especially the very complaint they seek to quash) when filing such petitions.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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