Chopper scam: Delhi court extends judicial custody of Ratul Puri till Oct 25

A Delhi court on Monday (October 14) extended the judicial custody of Ratul Puri, nephew of Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath, till October 25 in a money laundering case related to the alleged AgustaWestland chopper scam.

Special judge Arvind Kumar sent Puri to jail after the Enforcement Directorate moved an application seeking the judicial custody of Puri. “Accused is remanded to judicial custody till October 25, 2019,” the judge said.

The court further stated that the counsel for Puri has moved an application for permitting him to carry documents related to the proceedings with him to Tihar Jail in order to efficiently present his defence. “The Jail Authority is directed to permit the accused to carry the documents, as per jail rules,” the judge said. The ED arrested Puri on September 4.

The money laundering case was lodged following alleged irregularities in the purchase of 12 VVIP choppers from Italy-based Finmeccanicas British subsidiary, AgustaWestland. Puri was earlier arrested in another case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) for alleged bank fraud after he appeared before the central probe agency here in the chopper scam after it had slapped a fresh criminal case against him and others, taking cognisance of a CBI FIR.

The latest PMLA case emerged from a CBI FIR of August 17, where Ratul Puri, his father Deepak Puri, mother Nita (Kamal Nath’s sister) and others were booked in connection with a ₹354 crore bank fraud case filed by the Central Bank of India.