Delhi HC dismisses plea by actor Jacqueline Fernandez to quash money-laundering case against her
The actor had moved court seeking to quash the Enforcement Directorate's case against her, along with a second supplementary chargesheet that names her as the tenth accused.
In her plea, Fernandez claimed that she was a victim of Chandrasekhar's 'maliciously targeted attack'.
'There is absolutely no indication she had any involvement whatsoever in aiding him to launder his purportedly ill-gotten wealth,' the legal news outlet quoted the plea as saying.
The petition said that in view of this, she could not be prosecuted for alleged money laundering.
Fernandez's plea also stated that the Enforcement Directorate had acknowledged that Tihar Jail officials gave Chandrasekhar unrestricted access to mobile phones and other technology, which he allegedly used to deceive the original complainant and several film artists, including herself.
The plea further argued that since the agency had already recorded her statement as a prosecution witness in the original fraud case, continuing proceedings against her in the money laundering case was unjustified.
In the money laundering case, Chandrashekhar is accused of extorting around Rs 215 crore from Shivinder Singh, a former promoter of pharmaceutical giant Ranbaxy, and his wife Aditi Singh. Chandrashekhar had allegedly impersonated the Union home secretary, law secretary and an officer in the prime minister's office while speaking to them.
On August 7, 2022, Chandrashekhar was arrested by the Delhi Police.
The Enforcement Directorate is also investigating the allegations that Chandrashekhar used funds gained by cheating and extorting high-profile individuals to buy gifts for Fernandez. The agency had named the actor in a supplementary chargesheet in the case.
The supplementary chargesheet alleged that Chandrashekhar gave gifts worth Rs 5.71 crore to Fernandez from the proceeds of crime generated by criminal activities, including extortion. The investigating agency also claimed that Fernandez was aware that the gifts given to her were the proceeds of crime.
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