Nawab Malik remanded to judicial custody till March 21

A special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court on Monday remanded Maharashtra minorities development minister Nawab Malik to judicial custody till March 21. Malik was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with a money laundering case against fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim and some of his close aides.

ED officials on Monday produced Malik before special PMLA judge Rahul Rokade, as his custody was nearly over. Special counsel for the agency, advocate Sunil Gonsalves urged the court to remand the 62-year-old NCP leader to judicial custody.

The ED arrested the Maharashtra cabinet minister on February 23 in connection with a money laundering case registered against fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim, wanted for the 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts. The arrest was made after the ED raided several premises of people linked to Ibrahim, including his late sister Haseena Parkar, with whom Malik had allegedly had transactions related to a property during the last two decades.

The investigative agency claimed that Malik had usurped a property at Kurla- Goawala Compound, admeasuring about three acres and valued at about ₹300 crore, by reportedly paying ₹5 lakh to Parkar (who did not have any claim to the property), thus indirectly funding her gangster brother’s activities.

“By paying for an illegally occupied share to Haseena Parkar, Nawab Malik helped the D-Company financially,” said the ED’s application for Malik’s custody remand submitted to the court last month.

The minister has denied the allegations and claimed the transaction was legitimate and backed by proper documentation.