A Vacation Bench comprising Justices PV Sanjay Kumar and Augustine George Masih noted that the multiple and severe charges against Paulose precluded her from obtaining interim bail, despite her citing a protracted trial and seeking parity with co-accused individuals.
NEW DELHI: Today (14th June): The Supreme Court denied bail to Leena Paulose, wife of conman Sukesh Chandrasekhar, in connection with a Rs 200 crore extortion case.
A Vacation Bench comprising Justices PV Sanjay Kumar and Augustine George Masih noted that the multiple and severe charges against Paulose precluded her from obtaining interim bail, despite her citing a protracted trial and seeking parity with co-accused individuals.
Therefore, the Supreme Court upheld a May 25 Delhi High Court order that had also declined interim relief to Paulose.
The case against Paulose pertains to an extortion investigation led by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Delhi Police. The Delhi Police allege that Chandrasekhar defrauded the wives of former Ranbaxy promoters Shivinder Singh and Malvinder Singh of Rs 200 crores. Chandrasekhar allegedly impersonated a law ministry officer, convincing the women to pay several crores of rupees to secure bail for their husbands.
The EOW’s chargesheet against Paulose includes accusations under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC)—170, 186, 384, 386, 388, 419, 420, 406, 409, 468, 471, 353, 506, 120B—along with Section 66D of the Information Technology Act and Sections 3 and 4 of the Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act, 1999.
Paulose, Chandrasekhar, and others are accused of using Hawala routes to create shell companies and launder money acquired from their criminal activities.
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In October of the previous year, the Supreme Court also refused to grant bail to Paulose, supporting a prior Delhi High Court decision. The High Court had determined that there was prima facie evidence of their involvement in the offenses, and no errors were found in the trial court’s denial of their bail applications.
Case Title: Leena Paulose vs State of NCT of Delhi
