Unitech owners operating from Tihar, Supreme Court shifts them to Mumbai

The Supreme Court on Thursday ordered that former Unitech promoters Sanjay Chandra and Ajay Chandra be immediately shifted from the Tihar Jail here to separate jails in Mumbai and slammed the prison authorities as “absolutely shameless” after the ED claimed the brothers were conducting business from inside in connivance with the prison staff.

The Enforcement Directorate(ED) also alleged it had unearthed a “secret underground office” in the national capital and that the premises was being operated by the erstwhile Unitech founder Ramesh Chandra and visited by his sons Sanjay and Ajay while on parole or bail.

Directing that Sanjay and Ajay Chandra be kept in Mumbai’s Arthur Road Jail and Taloja Central Jail in Navi Mumbai after it perused the two status reports of the ED, the top court directed the Delhi Police Commissioner to personally hold an inquiry forthwith about the conduct of the Tihar Jail Superintendent and other staff for conniving with the Chandra brothers to flout the court orders and undermine its jurisdiction. The Commissioner was asked to submit a report to the court within four weeks.

“We are of the view that materials on record indicates that despite the orders of this court, activities are taking place within the premises of Tihar Central Jail, where the two accused are lodged, which have the propensity to undermine the authority of the court, as also to derail the investigations which have been ordered to be done by the ED including but not confined to the PMLA.

"In the circumstances, we direct that both the accused Ajay Chandra and Sanjay Chandra be shifted from Tihar Central Jail to the premises of Arthur Road Jail, Mumbai and at Taloja Central Jail,” said a bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud and M R Shah in its order.

The ED, which has been investigating money laundering charges against the Chandras and Unitech Ltd, said in its report that both Sanjay and Ajay have rendered the entire judicial custody meaningless as they have been freely communicating, instructing their officials and disposing of properties from inside the jail in connivance with the prison staff there.

Both Sanjay and Ajay, who are in jail since August 2017, are accused of siphoning off home buyers’ money.

During the hearing, the court told Additional Solicitor General Madhavi Divan, appearing for the ED, “Tihar jail officials have actively connived with the accused to flout the orders of this court. We have to say that the Tihar Jail superintendent and his staff are absolutely shameless. But we don't want to miss the wood for the trees.

“All we have to say is that Tihar Jail staff are shameless. Can you imagine it is happening right in the Centre and in the capital? We will certainly take them to task. We will first shift the accused from this jail”.

The apex court said a copy of its communication shall be forwarded by the Registrar (Judicial) of this Court to the Director General of Police, Maharashtra so that necessary arrangements can be made immediately for housing the accused at Arthur Road Jail and Taloja Central Jail.

The two ED reports have raised some “serious and disturbing” issues for consideration and will be dealt with accordingly, the top court said.

The bench said the contents of the ED letter written to the Delhi CP raises serious issues and of concern to the court in particular is that its effort and jurisdiction are sought to be undermined in complicity with the jail staff.

Senior advocates Vikas Singh and Siddharth Dave, appearing for the Chandra brothers, said the ED has made prejudicial arguments to persuade the court that they do not get default bail, which they are entitled to in this case.

So far the ED has not been able to find the trail of money and the 'secret office' which they are talking of is in the Green Park area and already on record, Singh claimed.

“I have nothing to hide. What reliefs are given to the new management, had it been given to me, I would have constructed all the flats and delivered it to the home buyers. The court should not act on the prejudicial arguments made by ED”, Singh said, while denying all the wrong doing alleged by the ED saying both the brothers have been following the jail manual.

The top court in its October 2017 order had asked the two brothers to deposit Rs 750 crore with the apex court registry by December 31, 2017. The Chandras have claimed they have complied with the court's conditions and have deposited an amount in excess of Rs 750 crore and therefore they should be granted bail.

The matter pertains to a criminal case filed initially after one complaint was lodged in 2015 which was followed by multiple complaints by 173 other home buyers of Unitech projects -- 'Wild Flower Country' and 'Anthea Project' -- located in Gurugram. The Delhi police earlier said 67 FIRs have been filed in the case.

The top court said the ED's submission that computers and other documents seized in the search and seizure operation should be given to the new board of management of Unitech cannot be accepted as these things should remain with the investigating agency to enable it to probe all aspects.

“This is not a court monitored investigation. We want ED to probe all aspects untrammelled. Your (ED) power is untrammelled. We don't want these computers and documents to be handed over to anyone else.

"If you need a forensic auditor, you can engage the one the court has engaged and if you want someone else to assess, then you can hire. There is no impediment on that,” the bench said, adding that the court should be apprised of the status of investigation in four weeks.

It also noted that in 2019 an order was passed directing that facilities which were given to Chandra brothers for disposing of properties and generating funds for the stalled projects were revoked.