Is Nawab Malik a ‘sick’ person as per PMLA and entitled to medical bail: asks HC

A single bench of justice MS Karnik said that Malik’s lawyers would have to first satisfy the court that the 63-year-old NCP leader is unwell and hence entitled to bail on medical grounds, and posted his bail plea for hearing on February 21

Mumbai: The Bombay high court (HC) on Tuesday queried whether Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader, Nawab Malik could be considered a “sick person” under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), for the purpose of deciding Malik’s bail plea in a money laundering case.

Mumbai, India - November 10, 2021: Maharashtra minister and NCP leader Nawab Malik reacts as he addresses a press conference at Kurla, in Mumbai, India, on Wednesday, November 10, 2021. (Photo by Vijay Bate/HT Photo) (HT PHOTO)

A single bench of justice MS Karnik said that Malik’s lawyers would have to first satisfy the court that the 63-year-old NCP leader is unwell and hence entitled to bail on medical grounds, and posted his bail plea for hearing on February 21.

The judge then asked both sides – Malik’s counsel and additional solicitor general Anil Singh for ED to argue on the issue of “sick person” as contemplated under the PMLA.

Under section 45 of the Act, the court has to ascertain that there are no reasonable grounds to believe that he or she is guilty of money laundering and is not likely to commit any offence while on bail. The section, however, makes certain exceptions and the twin conditions are not applicable if the accused person is below 16 years of age or a woman or sick or infirṃ.

The court said since several matters are coming up for hearing where the accused are seeking bail on medical grounds and therefore it was required to ascertain who can be termed a “sick” person and can be granted bail on that ground.

“Many matters are coming up where the person (accused) says grant me bail, as I am sick. So, I want to know what a sick person is,” justice Karnik said. The court also added that if it finds that Malik is unwell, as contemplated under the PMLA, he will be entitled to bail, but otherwise, he will have to wait for his turn.

Malik, who has been admitted to a private hospital due to kidney-related complications, moved to the high court in December 2022 after his bail plea was rejected by the special PMLA court.

ED arrested Malik on February 23, 2022, in the money laundering case registered against him in connection with alleged usurping Goawala Compound – a ₹300-crore land parcel in Kurla in connivance with fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar’s deceased sister, Haseena Parkar.

The money laundering case in turn is based on an FIR registered by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on February 3, 2022, against the fugitive gangster and his close associates. ED has accused Malik of “indirectly funding the D-gang activities by usurping a prime piece of land in Kurla with the help of Dawood’s deceased sister, Haseena Parkar and by using a fabricated power-of-attorney.

In its chargesheet, the agency claimed that the former Maharashtra minister had paid only ₹20 lakh to acquire the property in a deal dating back to September 2005, and paid the amount to people other than the owner of the three-acre compound, Munira Plumber.