New Delhi: Delhi High Court on Friday triggered guaranteed Journalists Release Rajeev Sharma in connection with the money laundering probe associated with alleged leakage and supply of sensitive information to Chinese intelligence officers.
Sharma was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
Justice Mukta Gupta, while reciting orders at the City-based PLEA Bail Bail, said, “The applicant has given a guarantee”.
Detailed orders will be available later.
Sharma’s advisor had previously proposed that the alleged money laundering case emerged from the police case under the Secrets Secrets Act (OSA), where he was released with the default guarantee in 2020.
Guarantee request was opposed by Ed which said the violation was answered.
By him has cross-border implications and if released, it will not be available for further investigation.
The agency has submitted that since Sharma is suspected of supplying confidential information to Chinese intelligence officials during foreign trips, part of a violation occurred at a foreign location.
Because Sharma has enjoyed the results of crime in various foreign countries through travel and foreign expenditure there, a violation in this case is also a violation of cross-border implications too, it argues.
It also alleged that Sharma did not work with investigations and strongly failed to build even Prima Facie Innocence at this stage under the money laundering law.
Sharma has approached the High Court after the court session denied the guarantee in July last year.
Ed had caught it under the section of the prevention of money laundering Law (PMLA) on July 1, 2021.
The ED case was based on the Delhi Police FIR which was submitted under the official secret law and various parts of the Indian Criminal Code (IPC) against Sharma in 2020 .
Journalists were arrested by Delhi Police specifically on September 14, 2020, and were charged with continuing information about the spread of the Indian Army and the country’s border strategy to Chinese intelligence officers.
He was given a guarantee by the Delhi High Court in this case in December 2020.
(with input from PTI)