Delhi court lists supplementary charge sheet against AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan for consideration

Special judge Jitendra Singh took up the matter on Monday and scheduled it for further consideration after raising certain queries. Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) Simon Benjamin and the Investigation Officer appeared for the ED.

On October 29, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) filed a supplementary prosecution complaint (supplementary charge sheet) against AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan. One Mariam Siddiqui is also named as an accused; she has been charged without arrest. This case is related to alleged money laundering in the purchase of land in the Okhla area for Rs 36 crore. The charge sheet is 110 pages long.

Amanatullah Khan was arrested on September 2, 2024. His regular bail is also pending before the Rouse Avenue court and is scheduled for November 7. The AAP MLA has been arrested in connection with the alleged money laundering case linked to the purchase of a 1,200-square-yard plot worth Rs 36 crore in Okhla. While seeking his custodial remand on September 2, the agency stated that Amanatullah is the main accused in the entire controversy. The proceeds of crime were laundered through the purchase of land.

The agency also mentioned that a prosecution complaint had already been filed against four accused who were arrested earlier in November 2023, and cognizance has been taken.

SPP Manish Jain submitted that Amanatullah Khan's anticipatory bail was dismissed. He further stated that 14 summons had been issued to him, and the accused was in defiance of these summons. The ED has alleged that the property in question was valued at Rs 36 crore, but an agreement to sell was fabricated to show it as being worth Rs 13.4 crore. It was submitted that Rs 4 crore was paid, and the remaining amount was paid through banking channels.

It was further submitted that another agreement to sell was recovered from the mobile of one of the accused. In this agreement to sell, the consideration price of the property was Rs 36 crore.

The ED stated that out of the said amount, Rs 9 crore was paid through banking channels, while Rs 27 crore was paid in cash. Accused Amanatullah Khan paid Rs 8 crore, and the remaining amount was paid by other accused persons.The ED also mentioned that diaries belonging to Qausar Imm Siddiqui show high-value financial transactions. During searches, various incriminating evidence was recovered. The handwriting of Qausar Imam Siddiqui has been confirmed by the forensic science laboratory, indicating he wrote the diaries himself.

While seeking remand, the ED stated that Amanat's custody was required as he is the main person behind the case. They needed to confront him with the evidence.

The CBI had also filed a case, and the charge sheet was filed without arresting Amanatullah. While granted bail, the court had noted that no recovery of money was made, his counsel argued.

Earlier in January, the Rouse Avenue court took cognizance of the prosecution complaint (charge sheet) filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against four accused and one firm. The ED charged four individuals: Zeeshan Haider, his partnership firm Sky Power, Javed Imam Siddiqui, Dawood Nasir, and Qausar Imam Siddiqui.

The ED has alleged money laundering in the purchase and sale of the Rs 36 crore property at the behest of AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan. It is alleged that this property was purchased with ill-gotten money, with Amanatullah himself handing over Rs 8 crore in cash.

The ED submitted that the allegations in the predicate offence relate to irregularities in the Delhi Waqf Board and that the main accused, Amanatullah, was involved in corrupt practices. There are allegations of misappropriation and siphoning of funds amounting to Rs 100 crore, with jobs being provided to people in the Delhi Waqf Board.

It was also submitted that during the investigation of this Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) case, the ED considered the FIRs registered earlier by the CBI, the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), and the Delhi Police.

The ACB requested an investigation under PMLA against MLA and then-chairman Amanatullah Khan. Properties were allegedly acquired in Delhi, Telangana, and Uttarakhand using the alleged ill-gotten money.

The ACB conducted searches at the premises owned and controlled by Hamid Ali Khan and Qausar Imam Siddiqui, recovering incriminating evidence and illegal weapons.

During these searches, three diaries maintained by Qausar Imam Siddiqui were recovered. In relation to the recovery of illegal weapons, an FIR was registered at the Jamia Nagar police station under the Arms Act.

It was also alleged that properties were purchased in the name of his benamidar, Zeeshan Haider.

The ED submitted that the diaries reveal high-value transactions between Amanatullah and Javed Imam Siddiqui, including the purchase of a plot measuring 1,200 square yards in Tikona Park, Okhla. This particular property was purchased for Rs 36 crore, and this transaction is supported by the diary. Amanatullah handed over Rs 8 crore in cash, while Rs 9 crore was paid through banking channels by accused Zeeshan and Dawood Nasir to Javed Imam Siddiqui.

The original owner of the property is Aisha Kanwar, who bought it in 2019. It was sold to the accused Zeeshan and Dawood in 2021.

An agreement to sell for Rs 36 crore was recovered from the mobile of the accused, and this transaction is supported by a diary, an agreement to sell, and the behest of Amanatullah. The ED submitted that this property was acquired at the behest of Amanatullah Khan, noting that Qausar Imam Siddiqui is the cousin of Javed Imam Siddiqui.

Instead of presenting the original agreement for Rs 36 crore, a fabricated agreement of Rs 13.40 crore was created and produced, indicating manipulation of evidence, the ED's counsel argued. The ED's counsel also stated that out of Rs 36 crore, a cash transaction of Rs 27 crore is evident, establishing a clear case against the accused persons and justifying the summoning of the accused.(ANI)