Court Asks Enforcement Directorate For Detailed Reply On Lobbyist Deepak Talwar's Bail Plea

A Delhi court today directed the Enforcement Directorate to file a detailed reply on the bail application of corporate lobbyist Deepak Talwar in a money laundering case related to receiving foreign funding illegally.

In a hearing held through video conferencing, Special Judge Ajay Kumar Kuhar directed the ED to file its response by April 24 and adjourned the hearing on the application till then.

The court adjourned the matter after ED's counsel Amit Mahajan opposed the application saying it was not the right stage to entertain the bail plea.

In his application, Deepak Talwar has said that no purpose will be served by keeping him in further custody since the probe was already complete and there was no chance that the investigation could be hampered.

A Delhi court had earlier dismissed the interim bail application by Deepak Talwar moved on medical grounds in view of coronavirus, noting that he was lodged in Tihar central jail, where all the facilities were available.

The court had passed the order after Mahajan along with ED's counsel Nitesh Rana said that the jail authorities had not filed any report about Talwar''s health condition which suggests he risks the infection.

According to the ED, Deepak Talwar was the founding member of NGO Advantage India that had received foreign contribution of Rs 90.72 crore from MBDA England, a leading European missile manufacturer, and Airbus France under CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) funding between 2012-13 to 2015-16.

"Investigation has revealed that the NGO booked "bogus" expenditure under various heads to show that foreign donation was utilised for various purposes," the agency had said.
 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)