Jailed Conman's Request Seeking Transfer Of Case To Another Judge Rejected

Alleged conman Sukesh Chandrasekhar on Saturday filed a petition seeking the transfer of the case to another judge in the Rs 200 crore money laundering case.

In the petition, he further alleged that the judge was biased.

Meanwhile, Patiala House Court refused to hear Sukesh Chandrasekhar's plea.

Patiala House Court expressed displeasure over the filing of a petition by Sukesh. The court said that the accused does not have the right to comment on the presiding officer.

The Court has also extended the judicial custody of Sukesh Chandrasekhar till March 31.

Earlier in the day, the Delhi Police produced Chandrashekhar to Delhi's Patiala House court in connection with a money laundering case.

On March 10 also he was presented before a Delhi court in a money laundering case.

Earlier on February 24, Delhi Court further granted three days remand of alleged conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar to Enforcement Directorate (ED), recently arrested in another case of extortion and money laundering.

He was arrested in an enforcement case information report (ECIR) registered by the ED for allegedly duping former promoter of Religare Enterprises Malvinder Singh's Wife Japna Singh of Rs 3.5 crore.

According to the complainant, Sukesh Chandrashekar had called Japna M Singh by impersonating himself as a senior government official and extorting money from her.

The Patiala House Court's Additional Session Judge Shailender Malik on February 24 extended the custodial remand by three days and noted that the custodial interrogation of the accused is required to confront the persons and with the further revelation of evidence from various persons whose name Sukesh his statements and find out the role of other Chandrashekhar has disclosed persons involved in helping Sukesh Chandrashekhar inside the jail and outside the jail in running his extortion racket from inside the jail and transferring the proceeds of crime out of India.

ED while seeking an extension of the remand period stated that the custodial interrogation of the Accused would enable the investigating agency to ascertain and identify the funds laundered. His custodial interrogation is, therefore, required for an effective investigation of the case to bring the instant case to a logical conclusion.

Custodial interrogation of the accused is necessary to ascertain his complicity with other key players involved in extortion and laundering the proceeds of crime and the modus operandi adopted with such other co-accused, stated ED in Court.

Earlier ED submitted that there is material evidence and reasons to believe that the said Accused is guilty of the offence of money laundering as per section 3 punishable under section 4 of the PMLA, The Accused is involved in the laundering of proceeds of crime and has been involved in projecting the proceeds of crime as untainted.

The accused Sukesh Chandrashekhar is deliberately withholding and not divulging the evidence and thus not cooperating in the investigation. Custodial interrogation of the accused Sukesh Chandrashekhar is essential to establish a money trail of Proceeds of Crime, said the ED in Court.

The said FIR has been registered on the basis of a complaint filed by Japna M Singh, wife of Malvinder Singh against certain unidentified persons for impersonating themselves as government officers and thereafter cheating her to the tune of Rs 3.5 crore.

The ED's case is based on an FIR filed by Delhi Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) against Sukesh Chandrasekhar who is accused of cheating and extorting money from Japna Singh and Aditi Singh, wife of the former promoter of Religare Enterprises, who are in Judicial custody related to alleged misappropriation of funds at Religare Finvest Ltd.

Both Chandrasekhar and his actor wife Leena Maria Paul were arrested by the Delhi Police in September last year for their alleged role in the duping case.

The names of Bollywood actors Jacqueline Fernandez, Nora Fatehi and several others surfaced during the investigation of the Economic Offence Wing of Delhi Police and Enforcement Directorate.

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