JOIN USDelhi High Court dismisses Satyendra Jain's plea against transfer of his bail plea
The Delhi High Court on Saturday dismissed a petition by Delhi's Health and Jail Minister Satyendra Kumar Jain against an order to transfer his bail plea from one court to another at Patiala House Court here, on the ground of apprehension of bias in the mind of investigating agency, Enforcement Directorate.
A single judge bench of Justice Yogesh Khanna said it was not a question of an integrity or uprightness of the judge but apprehension in the mind of a party, which was important.
The court declared that the order passed by the Principal District and Sessions Judge on September 22 does not suffer from any illegality or need interference.
Holding that the ED's request was not flimsy or unreasonable, the bench said the facts of the case showed the Enforcement Directorate did not merely harbour the apprehension but rather had acted upon it by rushing to this court on issue of trial court allowing medical reports of the minister from the hospital under the Delhi government's jurisdiction during the hearing on medical bail.
The ED apprehended that the petitioner may be misusing his position by feigning illness. The Investigating Officer, on visit, found during his hospitalisation, Jain was lying on bed without any canula on his hands; multi para meter monitor being switched off and being without any oxygen mask. Even the wife of the petitioner was allowed to stay with him, the ED said.
Senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Rahul Mehra, representing Jain, contended till date, not a single order has been passed by the Special Judge (PC Act) in favour of him.
Jain was arrested in May this year in a money laundering case.