[Wakf Board Funds Case] Delhi Court grants bail to AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan and 10 others in CBI case

A Delhi Court on Wednesday granted bail to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Amanatullah Khan and ten others in the Central Bureau of Investigations (CBI) case registered in connection with the misappropriation of Delhi Wakf Board funds.

Observing that "it is a fit case where bail should be granted to applicants pending trial and that there is no reason or ground for taking any of them into custody”, Special Judge M K Nagpal of the Rouse Avenue Court granted bail to Khan and ten others on a personal bail bond of Rs. 50,000 and a surety of like amount.

In November 2022, the CBI court had taken cognizance of offences on the Central agency’s First Information Report (FIR) and summoned all the accused persons. The CBI filed the chargesheet in August 2022, under Sections 120B of the Indian Penal Code, and Sections 13(1)(d) and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

It claimed that the appointments for 89 days resulted in a loss of Rs. 27,20,494 to the government exchequer in the form of salaries and emoluments paid to the appointees for their work.

The court opined that the liberty of an accused is of paramount consideration and his constitutional right to life and liberty is required to be protected and safeguarded while considering the question of grant of bail to him. It also stated that the non-arrest of the accused during the investigation is an “important or prime factor”, which has to be taken into consideration.

The court noted that though the chargesheet was filed in August 2022, the FIR in the case was registered back in November 2016 and that the investigation has been pending with the CBI for “six years”, during which sufficient time and opportunity was available to the IO to arrest the accused persons.

“However, still the IO or CBI had taken a conscious decision not to arrest any of the above applicants in this case and the IO has chargesheeted them before this court without arrest,” the judge said. It added, “Hence, morally and also legally in view of the guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court in Satender Kumar Anil case, the CBI should not have any right to oppose the request of bail being made by the accused persona and that it should be left to the court to consider the matter on merits,” the court said.

The court stated that admittedly, there were no allegations made against any of the applicants for demand, payment, or acceptance, etc. of bribe in connection with the aforementioned appointments, and provisions of the PC Act had been invoked as it had been alleged that public offices were abused and misused. “Again, further investigation in the matter may take a long time to conclude and there is no purpose behind taking or keeping the accused persons in custody awaiting conclusion thereof”, it said.

Conclusively, while granting bail the court observed, “Further, had there been any such apprehension in the mind of the investigating agency that the applicants will tamper with or influence the evidence or pending investigation, then nothing prevented the IO to arrest the applicants in this case or to bring the above fact or conduct of the applicants to notice of this court and has not done so, the prosecution cannot now be heard of saying it simply to oppose the bail of accused persons. Again, such apprehensions being expressed from the side of prosecution have to be reasonable and real and not mere apprehensions having no backing by satisfactory material”.

Notably, in September 2022, Special Judge Vikas Dhull granted bail to Khan in connection with the misappropriation of Delhi Wakf Board funds in Anti- Corruption Bureau (ACB) case.

Case Title: CBI v. Amanatullah Khan & Ors.

Statue: The Indian Penal Code; The Code of Criminal Procedure; The Prevention of Corruption Act.