Delhi Court extends ED custody of scribe by five days
The agency claimed that a number of documents, both in hard copies as well as in pen drives, had been recovered from Rai.
New Delhi: A Delhi court today allowed custodial interrogation of journalist Upendra Rai by the Enforcement Directorate for another five days in a money laundering case related to alleged extortion and dubious financial transactions.
Metropolitan Magistrate Bhavna Kalia granted the remand to the agency after Delhi-based scribe Rai was produced before the court on expiry of his seven-day ED custody.
Special public prosecutors Nitesh Rana and N K Matta, appearing for the ED, sought extension of Rai’s custody by seven more days, saying he was required to be confronted with the evidence collected during his earlier remand.
The agency claimed before the court that “top secret documents” were recovered from Rai’s possession and the ED was trying to find out how he procured them. “Summons have been issued to senior government officials and Rai is required to be confronted with them,” the agency said in its application moved through advocate A.R. Aditya.
It alleged that the accused had extorted money from various person claiming he had information against them as he was a journalist.
Thousands of crore of rupees was extorted, the ED alleged. Rai was arrested on June 8 by the ED under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act at the Tihar jail here, moments after he secured bail in a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) case related to alleged extortion and dubious financial transactions.
The agency claimed that a number of documents, both in hard copies as well as in pen drives, had been recovered from Rai.
The agency alleged that the scribe frequently travelled abroad to park his ill-gotten money and that his custodial interrogation was needed to unearth the larger conspiracy.
The directorate’s application was opposed by Rai advocate Vivek Sud on the ground that the agency had already been granted enough time to interrogate the accused.