Ahmedabad, March 12 A special court under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) here on Thursday rejected the regular bail plea of IAS officer and former Surendranagar collector Rajendrakumar Patel, who was arrested in January by the Enforcement Directorate in a bribery-linked money laundering case.
The court of special PMLA judge KM Sojitra said it was not inclined to allow the application for regular bail moved by Patel, a 2015-batch Indian Administrative Service officer.
Having considered the nature of evidence presented in the complaint and case papers, the court said, "it cannot form a prima facie opinion that the applicant is not guilty of having committed / indulged in the offence of money laundering."
The ED investigated alleged money laundering involving Patel, deputy mamlatdar Chandrasingh Mori, and others following the registration of an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
The court observed that the complaint, prima facie, reveals that the IAS officer received Rs 3.12 crore as bribe money, as per the "hisaab" sheet, statements of co-accused recorded under section 50 of the PMLA Act, and digital records.
"It is necessary to note that the applicant is facing charges under sections 12, 13(1)(d), and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, and on the basis of said schedule, the applicant is also facing charges under the PMLA Act for having received Rs. 3,12,62,230 as bribe money from illegal activities," the court noted.
The Gujarat Anti-Corruption Bureau also registered an FIR against Patel and three others based on a complaint by the ED related to the money laundering investigation.
As deputy mamlatdar, Mori was entrusted with title verification and processing of CLU (change of land use) applications under the Saurashtra Gharkhed Tenancy Settlement and Agricultural Lands Ordinance of 1949.
Mori allegedly misused his position and collected bribes from applicants for the speedy approval of applications. The ED had earlier stated that the bribe amount was calculated on a square metre basis.
