Koda’s bail plea rejected

RANCHI - Jharkhand High Court Friday rejected the bail plea of former chief minister Madhu Koda, the main accused in a money-laundering scam.

Meanwhile, an enforcement directorate team interrogated Koda in Ranchi jail for nearly five hours.

The bench of Justice A. Sahay rejected the bail petition of Koda and former minister Kamlesh Singh who are in jail since Nov 30 last year, after their arrest by the Jharkhand vigilance bureau on graft charges.

The vigilance bureau filed charge-sheets against both Koda and Singh in January this year, accusing them of amassing assets amounting to more than 400 and 130 percent, respectively, of their known sources of income.

Koda is also accused in a Rs.2,500 crore money laundering scam. In their probe of the money sent abroad illegally by Koda and his associates Vinod Sinha, Sanjay Chaudhary (both absconding), income tax and enforcement directorate teams raided 145 places in nine cities, including Koda’s houses, in October last year and February this year.

A PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) court June 23 issued a Letter Rogatory (LR) to Dubai on a petition by the enforcement directorate, to help its investigation of the Koda scam.

The Friday interrogation of Koda is learnt to have been related to Rs.270 crore investment made in Dubai by Koda and his associates. According to sources, hawala (illegal transfer of money) operator Anil Bastwade admitted during interrogation that Rs.270 crore were sent to Dubai through hawala transactions by Koda and his associates.

Of the Rs.270 crore, Bastwade invested Rs.225 crore in various projects in Dubai, including at the Jebel Ali free zone and in Jumeirah village.