New Delhi: The Supreme Court (SC) is set to consider a plea filed by Bijaya Ketan Sahoo, an Odisha Administrative Service officer seeking anticipatory bail in a money laundering case initiated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) due to alleged possession of assets disproportionate to known sources of income.
According to the cause list published on the apex court’s website, a vacation bench comprising Justices Abhay S Oka and Rajesh Bindal will hear the matter on June 24.
Earlier, the Orissa High Court, in its order dated May 10, declined to grant anticipatory bail, citing a prima facie case against the OAS officer regarding his involvement in acquiring assets linked to alleged criminal proceeds.
However, a bench led by Justice Chittaranjan Das of the High Court directed that if Sahoo presents himself before the Special Court and seeks regular bail, such a plea shall be evaluated on its own merits.
The ED launched an investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) following an FIR filed at Cuttack’s Vigilance Police Station against Odisha Financial Official Nalini Prusty, her husband Bijaya Ketan Sahoo, and other family members, concerning possession of assets disproportionate to their income, totaling Rs. 5 crore.
Further inquiry revealed that the bureaucratic couple had acquired six plots and flats, constructing a three-story building in Bhubaneswar’s Chandrasekharpur in the name of a relative with no independent income source.
Based on the ED’s allegations, the PMLA court in Bhubaneswar summoned Sahoo to appear for proceedings.
