Madras HC seeks ED's counter to anticipatory bail plea of Jaffer Sadiq's wife, brother

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court directed the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) to file a counter to the anticipatory bail plea of alleged drug kingpin and expelled DMK functionary Jaffer Sadiq's wife and brother in the Narcotic Control Bureau (NCB) and Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) cases.

Justice TV Thamilselvi heard the anticipatory bail petitions of Ameena Banu and Mohamed Salim, the wife and brother of Jaffer Sadiq.

The petitioners submitted that they had been questioned by the ED twice after being issued a summons in the NCB case but despite that, the investigation agency had sent another summons with a motive to harass them.

The ED objected to the submission and submitted that the investigation agency did not have any motive to harass the petitioners as Jaffer Sadiq was already arrested in the NCB and PMLA cases. The notice was served to the petitioners to seek their cooperation in the investigation, it added.

The ED also sought time to file a counter to the petition after which the bench posted the matter to July 29.

Jaffer Sadiq, also a film producer, was arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in March this year for smuggling pseudoephedrine to Australia and New Zealand. He was then sent to the Tihar Central Prison in New Delhi.

Later, the Enforcement Directorate booked him on June 26 in a money laundering case connected to the narcotics case. The ED then issued a Prisoner Transit warrant and produced Sadiq before a principal sessions court in Chennai.

Subsequently, on July 16, the sessions court allowed the ED to take Sadiq under custody to interrogate him regarding the money laundering case.

Meanwhile, the Delhi court had recently given him bail in the narcotics case.