Money Laundering Case: Court To Pronounce its Order on Lalu's Daughter Misa Bharti on Feb 8

New Delhi: A special court here today reserved its order on taking cognisance of the Enforcement

Directorate's (ED) charge sheet filed against RJD chief Lalu Prasad's daughter Misa Bharti and her husband in a money laundering case for February 8.

Special Judge N K Malhotra heard the submissions by the ED's counsel on the evidence the agency submitted in support of its final report against the accused and fixed February 8 for the pronouncement of the order.

The ED had, on December 23, filed its final report against Bharti and her husband Shailesh Kumar through advocate Nitesh Rana. The agency had earlier attached a Delhi farmhouse of the couple in connection with its money-laundering probe.

The farmhouse, located at 26, Palam Farms in south Delhi's Bijwasan area, was attached provisionally under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). It belonged to Bharti and Kumar and was "held in the name of M/s Mishail Packers and Printers Private Limited", the central probe agency had said.

"It was purchased in 2008-09, using Rs 1.2 crore involved in money laundering," it had alleged. The agency had raided the farmhouse and a few other locations in July last year as part of its probe against two brothers -- Surendra Kumar Jain and Virendra Jain – and others, who were alleged to have laundered several crores of rupees using shell companies.

The Jain brothers, currently on bail, were arrested by the ED under the PMLA. The ED had also arrested Rajesh Agrawal, a chartered accountant who had allegedly mediated and provided a cash amount of "Rs 90 lakh to the Jain brothers in advance so as to invest in M/s Mishail Packers and Printers Pvt Ltd as share premium".

One of the firms that the arrested duo dealt with was Mishail Printers and Packers Private Limited.

Bharti and her husband are alleged to have been directors in this firm in the past. "The company, M/s Mishail Packers, and Printers, was registered at 25, Tughlak Road, New Delhi till the shares were bought by Bharti.

"It was only during 2009-10 that the address was changed to Farm no. 26, Palam Farms, VPO Bijwasan, New Delhi. Bharti and Kumar were the directors of the company during the relevant period," the ED had said. Bharti and her husband were interrogated and their statements recorded by the agency.

The ED had alleged that the Jain brothers, Agrawal and the daughter and son-in-law of the former Bihar chief minister were the "key persons behind the laundering of Rs 1.2 crore".