11 August,2023 07:07 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Nawab Malik. File Pic
The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Congress on Friday welcomed the interim bail granted to former Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik by the Supreme Court on medical grounds in a money laundering case, reported the PTI.
Nawab Malik, a senior NCP leader, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in February 2022 in the case allegedly linked to the activities of fugitive underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and his associates.
NCP's national spokesperson Clyde Crasto thanked the apex court for granting interim bail for two months to the politician, saying the 64-year-old former Maharashtra minister can avail medical treatment for his multiple health issues during this period.
Leader of Opposition in the state assembly Vijay Wadettiwar of the Congress also welcomed the bail granted to Malik, who is in judicial custody and currently undergoing treatment in a private hospital in Mumbai.
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The NCP leader had moved the SC against the Bombay High Court's July 13 order denying him bail on medical grounds in the case.
He had sought relief from the HC, claiming he was suffering from a chronic kidney disease apart from various other ailments. The MLA from Anushakti Nagar in Mumbai also sought bail on merit.
The high court had said it will hear his plea seeking bail on merit after two weeks.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court on Friday granted interim bail for two months to former Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik on medical grounds in a money laundering case.
Nawab Malik had moved the top court against the Bombay High Court's July 13 order denying him bail on medical grounds in the case being probed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
A bench of justices Aniruddha Bose and Bela M Trivedi noted that Malik is in hospital for kidney disease and other ailments.
"We are passing the order strictly on medical conditions and have not entered into the merits of the case," the bench said.
The ED had arrested Malik in February 2022 in the case allegedly linked to the activities of fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim and his associates.
The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader is in judicial custody and currently undergoing treatment in a private hospital in Mumbai.
Nawab Malik had sought relief from the HC, claiming he was suffering from a chronic kidney disease apart from various other ailments. He also sought bail on merit.
The high court had said it will hear his plea seeking bail on merit after two weeks.
The ED's case against Malik is based on an FIR filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) against Dawood Ibrahim, a designated global terrorist and a key accused in the 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts, and his associates under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
(with PTI inputs)
