A Delhi court on Saturday directed the framing of charges against alleged conman Sukesh Chandrasekhar, his wife Leena Maria Paul, Bollywood actor Jacqueline Fernandez, and several others in a money laundering case connected to the alleged extortion of Rs 200 crore from Aditi Singh. Charges have also been framed against Chandrasekhar, Paul, and others in a separate case under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) related to the same extortion. Notably, Jacqueline Fernandez is not an accused in the MCOCA case.
Court Proceedings and Charges
Additional Sessions Judge Prashant Sharma ordered the framing of charges in both cases. In the money laundering case, the court stated, 'I conclude that prima facie, there is sufficient material on record based upon which a strong suspicion is raised against all accused persons namely, Sukesh Chandrasekhar, Leena Maria Paul alias Leena Paulose, Deepak Ramnani, Pradeep Ramdanee, B. Mohanraj, Arun Muthu, D. Kamlesh Kothari, Pinky Irani, Jacqueline Fernandez, Pooja Singh, Dharam Singh Meena, Mahender Prasad Sundriyal, Sunder Bora, Komal Poddar, Jitender Narula, Avinash Kumar, and Jai Prakash Singhal, for which said accused persons have to be charged with offence under section 3 of PMLA, punishable under section 4 of PMLA.' The court scheduled the formal signing of charges for June 3 at 2 pm and directed all accused to appear in person.
Background of the Case
The case originated from a complaint filed by Aditi Singh, leading to a Delhi Police investigation. Subsequently, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) registered a money laundering case in connection with the alleged extortion. The Delhi High Court had earlier dismissed Jacqueline Fernandez's plea to quash the supplementary charge sheet filed against her by the ED. After taking cognizance of the charge sheet, the trial court issued summons to Fernandez, who later appeared and was granted bail.
Sukesh Chandrasekhar remains in judicial custody, while Leena Maria Paul was granted bail by the High Court in the money laundering case. However, her bail plea in the MCOCA case was rejected. Several other accused have bail applications pending before the Delhi High Court.
Fernandez's Approver Application Withdrawn
In a recent development, Bollywood actor Jacqueline Fernandez withdrew her application seeking to become an approver in the money laundering case. The case continues to unfold as legal proceedings progress.
