Money laundering: Verma, wife sent to judicial custody

Businessman Abhishek Verma and his wife, arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case, were on Monday remanded in judicial custody for two weeks by a Delhi court.

ED sleuths produced Verma and his Romanian wife Anca Maria Neascu before the court after expiry of four days of police custody and the court remanded them in judicial custody till September 10 after the probe agency said that they were not required for further custodial interrogation.

"Both the accused are remanded in judicial custody till September 10," Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM) Gautam Manan said.

Verma and his wife were arrested on August 22 by the ED after they had moved an application to surrender in the case.

The ED had earlier told the court that the case is having "wide international ramifications" and the probe in the case registered under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) is going on.

ED had said that Verma and his wife were involved in the money laundering case of very high magnitude "running into crores of rupees".

During the hearing, ED's prosecutor Naveen Kumar Matta moved an application and said that both the accused should be remanded in judicial custody as they have interrogated them.

The ED had registered a money laundering case against the couple for allegedly receiving money from a Swiss defence firm to keep it out of the Indian government's blacklist.

Verma and his wife are also accused in two separate cases filed by the CBI, including a forgery case lodged on complaint of Union Sports Minister Ajay Maken.

The counsel appearing for Vermas had earlier argued before the court that there is no complaint in this case before the court and his clients are in "illegal detention" under the PMLA as the ED has not complied with provisions of the CrPC.

Both the accused had been earlier granted bail on August 8 in a corruption case for allegedly receiving USD 5,30,000 from Rheinmetall Air Defence AG (RAD) for using their influence to stall its blacklisting proceedings here.

They were granted bail after the CBI had failed to file charge sheet against them within stipulated 60 days' period after their arrest on June 8 in the corruption case.

The CBI, however, had arrested them on the same day in the forgery case registered on Maken's complaint in the court room itself.

They were accused of writing a letter to the prime minister in 2009 on Maken's forged letterhead for easing of business visa norms.

Verma is also an accused in the Naval War Room leak case in which Navy's commercial secrets were allegedly leaked to foreign firms. Ravi Shankaran, kin of former Naval chief Arun Prakash, is also an accused in the case.