PMLA court rejects bail application of Purushottam Chavan in ₹264 cr TDS refund fraud case

MUMBAI: A special PMLA court on Saturday rejected the medical bail application of Purushottam Chavan, the husband of a Maharashtra-cadre IPS officer, in the alleged ₹263

MUMBAI: A special PMLA court on Saturday rejected the medical bail application of Purushottam Chavan, the husband of a Maharashtra-cadre IPS officer, in the alleged ₹263.95 crore Income Tax TDS refund fraud case.

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Chavan was arrested on May 20 by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) facing accusations of possession, concealment, and diversion of the proceeds of crime. He applied for bail under section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, (Special powers of the high court or court of session regarding bail) on medical grounds.

Earlier, the ED’s investigation of the fraud uncovered that several property and transferable development rights (TDR) documents seized from Chavan were fake. The agency also recovered documents related to over a dozen properties in the names of several individuals, estimated to be worth around ₹100 crore, including TDR documents, valued at around ₹50 crore.

After filing for bail, the court directed the jail authority to give a health report on Chavan. The medical papers filed along with the application show that Chavan is suffering from bipolar disorder and has been undergoing treatment. Therefore, the Ld. Counsel representing Chavan submitted that he must be referred to a psychiatrist for a brain MRI.

The medical reports for Chavan indicate that he has previously been referred to a psychiatrist for counselling and mental well-being, and has been prescribed medication. This proves that the Chief Medical Officer of Mumbai Central Prison is fully aware of Chavan’s condition and is providing appropriate treatment, said the counsel representing Chavan.

The court stated that the Chief Medical Officer of the Mumbai Central Prison and psychiatrist, who is providing medication to Chavan, would be the best person to give an opinion on whether he should be given a brain MRI or not.

The court rejected Chavan’s bail application, stating that if the medical officer and the psychiatrist visiting think that certain tests and a brain MRI of Purushottam Chavan must be done, they can decide to get the tests done.