Delhi Court Sends AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan To 4-Days ED Custody

Amanatullah Khan

A Delhi court on Monday night ordered AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan to be held in Enforcement Directorate custody for four days in connection with a money laundering case.

The court’s decision was based on evidence suggesting a violation of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

Khan was presented before Special Judge Rakesh Syal just hours after his arrest at his home. The ED requested a 10-day custody, stating that Khan needed to be confronted with other accused individuals and evidence related to the case. However, the judge granted a four-day custody, setting the next hearing for September 6. The court also rejected Khan’s claim that his arrest was illegal, ordering that his interrogation be conducted under CCTV surveillance.

The judge noted that cases involving criminal conspiracy, financial irregularities, and bribes often involve complex and secretive transactions, making custodial interrogation necessary. The evidence presented showed that properties were purchased for approximately Rs 36 crore, with Rs 27 crore paid in cash and Rs 8.33 crore paid by Khan. The court also observed that the property’s actual value was Rs 36 crore, but it was falsely reported as Rs 13.40 crore. The purchaser lacked the financial means to buy the property, indicating that Khan had used benamidars (proxies) to make the purchase.

The 50-year-old MLA from the Okhla assembly seat was arrested under PMLA provisions at 11:20 am, following a search of his residence by the ED earlier that morning. The money laundering investigation against Khan is based on two FIRs: one filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) concerning “irregularities” related to the Delhi Wakf Board, and another by the Delhi Anti-Corruption Branch regarding alleged possession of disproportionate assets.

The ED informed the court that Khan was “evasive” during questioning and was therefore arrested. The agency identified Khan as the main accused, alleging that proceeds of crime were laundered to purchase property and that cash was involved. The ED also accused Khan of non-cooperation, stating that he appeared only once in response to 14 summonses, and that was after being directed by the Supreme Court.

Khan is among several AAP leaders who have been arrested by the ED in various money laundering cases, including Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, and former minister Satyendar Jain. Sisodia and Singh have since been released on bail.

A video circulating online showed Khan sitting near his mother-in-law, who he said had recently undergone surgery. In another unconfirmed video, Khan is seen telling an ED officer outside his locked gate that he “knows they want to arrest” him. In a statement, Khan explained that his mother-in-law is a cancer patient who had surgery four days ago, and he had requested a four-week delay from the ED to care for her.

“Today, these people have come to arrest me. Will the ED deputy director take responsibility in front of the SHO that if they arrest me, it will not have a bad effect on my mother-in-law’s health and she will not die?” Khan said in a video message posted on X before his arrest. He claimed to have “fully cooperated” with the ED, noting that both the ACB and CBI had previously investigated the case and cleared him. He also mentioned that the ED had already searched his home on October 10, 2023.

The ED has accused Khan of acquiring “huge proceeds of crime” in cash through illegal recruitment of staff in the Delhi Wakf Board and investing these funds in immovable assets under the names of his associates. The agency also alleged that Khan engaged in “illegal recruitment” and made “illegal personal gains” by leasing Wakf Board properties during his tenure as chairman from 2018 to 2022.

In January, the ED filed a charge sheet in the case, naming Khan and three of his alleged associates: Zeeshan Haider, Daud Nasir, and Jawed Imam Siddiqui.