New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday granted a 2-month interim bail to former Maharashtra minister and NCP leader Nawab Malik on medical grounds in a money-laundering case probed by the Enforcement Directorate. He had challenged the denial of the bail to him by the Bombay High Court on July 13.
A bench of justices Aniruddha Bose and Bela M Trivedi noted that Malik is in hospital for kidney disease and other ailments. “We are passing the order strictly on medical conditions and have not entered into the merits of the case,” the bench said.
Nawab Malik money laundering case
The ED had arrested Malik in February 2022 in the case allegedly linked to the activities of fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim and his associates. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader is in judicial custody and currently undergoing treatment in a private hospital in Mumbai.
Malik had sought relief from the HC, claiming he was suffering from a chronic kidney disease apart from various other ailments. He also sought bail on merit. The high court had said it will hear his plea seeking bail on merit after two weeks.
The ED’s case against Malik is based on an FIR filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) against Dawood Ibrahim, a designated global terrorist and a key accused in the 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts, and his associates under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.