A 545-page judgment of the Supreme Court which upheld provisions of an anti-money laundering law rendering bail virtually impossible contrasts with the anxious urging of the Prime Minister, the Chief Justice of India and the Union Law Minister to make justice easy for undertrials.
Around 4,700 cases are being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate, the agency under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Of the 6.10 lakh prisoners across the country, 80% are undertrials.
The judgment, authored by Justice A.M. Khanwilkar on July 27, had upheld the PMLA’s controversial “twin conditions” for bail. That is, the trial court needs to give bail only if the accused proves he is not guilty of money laundering. And on the slim chance he does get bail, the accused has to also prove that he is “not likely to commit any offence while on bail”.
