Court Clears Nitin Bhatnagar in Moser Baer Money Laundering Case
New Delhi, India – The Rouse Avenue Court has discharged Nitin Bhatnagar, a citizen of Malta, from charges related to money laundering in the Moser Baer India Ltd. case. Special Judge Sanjeev Aggarwal stated that there was no evidence to suggest Bhatnagar committed the alleged crime, and thus, he should not face trial.
Judge Aggarwal emphasized that prosecuting Bhatnagar without any suspicion or evidence would violate Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. The court noted that Bhatnagar was not named in the initial FIR or the supplementary prosecution complaint filed by the CBI.
Senior Advocate Vikas Pahwa, representing Bhatnagar, argued that the standard of proof for framing charges is higher than that for deciding bail. Bhatnagar, who worked as a relationship manager at the Bank of Singapore, was not involved in controlling any corporate entities linked to the case.
Bhatnagar was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, on August 22, 2023. His lawyers argued that his arrest was illegal as he had cooperated fully with the investigation and was not named in any primary complaints.
The ED’s investigation began with an FIR filed by the CBI in 2019 against Moser Baer India Ltd. and its directors, including Ratul Puri, for allegedly siphoning off loan amounts. The ED claimed that Bhatnagar helped open a bank account for Pristine River Investments Limited, which was used to launder money.
Despite these claims, the court found no admissible evidence against Bhatnagar, leading to his discharge from the case.
Doubts Revealed
Nitin Bhatnagar -: Nitin Bhatnagar is a person who was accused of being involved in a money laundering case but has now been cleared of all charges by the court.
Moser Baer -: Moser Baer India Ltd. is a company that used to make CDs, DVDs, and other storage devices. It was involved in a legal case related to money laundering.
Money Laundering -: Money laundering is when people try to hide where money really came from, usually because it was earned in illegal ways.
Rouse Avenue Court -: Rouse Avenue Court is a special court in Delhi, India, that deals with cases related to corruption and other serious crimes.
Maltese citizen -: A Maltese citizen is someone who is from Malta, a small country in Europe.
Special Judge Sanjeev Aggarwal -: Special Judge Sanjeev Aggarwal is the judge who decided that there was no evidence against Nitin Bhatnagar in this case.
Bank of Singapore -: The Bank of Singapore is a bank where Nitin Bhatnagar used to work. It is based in Singapore, a country in Asia.
Enforcement Directorate -: The Enforcement Directorate is a government agency in India that investigates financial crimes like money laundering.
FIR -: FIR stands for First Information Report. It is a document prepared by the police when they receive information about a crime.
Article 21 of the Indian Constitution -: Article 21 of the Indian Constitution protects the right to life and personal liberty. It means that no one can be punished without a fair trial.
