SC To Hear Anticipatory Bail Plea Of Odisha Officer In Money Laundering Case

New Delhi: The Supreme Court will hear the anticipatory bail of Odisha Administrative Service (OAS) officer, Bijaya Ketan Sahoo, in connection with a money laundering case.

A vacation bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Rajesh Bindal will hear the matter on June 24, according to the cause list published on the website of the apex court.

On May 10, the Orissa High Court refused to grant Sahoo anticipatory bail, stating that a prima facie case stands against the OAS officer since he was involved in the acquisition of the properties in dealing with the “proceeds with crime”. A bench of Justice Chittaranjan Das of the High Court, however, added that if Sahoo appears before the Special Court and moves for grant of regular bail, the same shall be considered on its own merits.

The federal agency initiated a probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) on the basis of a police vigilance FIR of August 2018 registered in Cuttack against Odisha Financial Official Nalini Prusty, her husband Sahoo, and other family members for allegedly possessing disproportionate assets to the tune of Rs 5.05 crore.

Assets worth Rs 3.94 crore of the bureaucrat couple was also attached under the anti-money laundering law in 2022.

The investigations had revealed that the duo invested their unaccounted money in acquiring various properties and bank investments in their name and in the name of Debaki Prusty, the mother of Prusty. The properties included two flats in Bhubaneswar worth Rs 1.8 crore, furniture and interior articles valued at Rs 1.34 crore, a flat in Puri town estimated at Rs 21.4 lakh, a triple-storied building in Bhubaneswar worth Rs 49.6 lakh, six plots in Bhubaneswar and Jatni worth Rs 58 lakh, fixed deposits in four banks worth Rs 1.24 crore, deposit of Rs 22 lakh in saving bank accounts, household articles of Rs 46 lakh and gold, diamond jewellery estimated at Rs 40 lakh.