Delhi court quashes look out circular against businessman Sanjay Jain

The court, while giving relief to the former managing director of Surya Vinayak Industries, noted that Sanjay Jain is not a flight risk

New Delhi: In a setback for the Central Bureau of Investigation, a Delhi court on Saturday quashed a look out circular against businessman Sanjay Jain, who is accused of duping several banks of over ₹2,240 crore.

In a setback for the Central Bureau of Investigation, a Delhi court on Saturday quashed a look out circular against businessman Sanjay Jain, who is accused of duping several banks of over ₹2,240 crore. (Representational image)

The court, while giving relief to the former managing director of Surya Vinayak Industries, noted that Jain is not a flight risk.

The federal anti-corruption agency is probing Jain, his brother Rajiv Jain and Surya Vinayak Industries, which deals with farm commodities, since 2014, and has registered over half a dozen cases. The Enforcement Directorate, too, is conducting a parallel money laundering probe against them.

Jain’s lawyers Vijay Aggarwal and Yash Aggarwal sought the quashing of the circular on Saturday in the court of chief metropolitan magistrate at the Rouse Avenue Courts. “Jain is a permanent resident of Delhi and has travelled multiple times abroad since the issuance of LOC against him with the permission of Delhi High Court as well as with permission of magistrate and has duly returned back and complied with all the conditions,” they argued.

“The issuance of LOC is a serious issue which is violative of fundamental rights of a person. The issuance of LOC should not be normally resorted to as it deals with freedom of an individual to travel which has been recognized as a fundamental right under the constitution,” Vijay Aggarwal said.

CBI, however, opposed the quashing, saying there is an apprehension that Jain may leave the country and cited the example of Rajiv Jain, who is a co-accused in the case and has not returned from Dubai.

Aggarwal said the conduct of the co-accused has no bearing on deciding the plea.

The judge noted that “the charge sheet has already been filed in the present case. Accused (Sanjay Jain) has travelled abroad previously four times after taking permission from the court as per record. It is not the case of the CBI that accused evaded arrest nor failed to appear before the trial court despite the non bailable warrants nor has any coercive action been taken against him and he has traveled abroad number of times with the permission of the court, which concession he did not misuse.”

“There appears to be nothing on record to show that Sanjay Jain is flight risk or there is any likelihood of the applicant leaving the country to evade trial or arrest,” the court said.