ED produces Amanatullah Khan in Delhi court, seeks 10-day custody

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate on Monday produced AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan before a Delhi court in a money laundering case.

Khan was produced before Special Judge Rakesh Syal as the ED sought his 10-day custody, saying he was required to be confronted with other accused people and evidence in the case.

The counsel appearing for the accused challenged his arrest in the case.

The arguments in the case are currently underway.

Khan was taken into custody under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after the agency conducted a search at his residence in the Okhla area of the national capital earlier in the day.

The ED told the court that some questions were put to Khan during the searches but he remained "evasive" and hence was arrested.

The ED told the court that Khan was the main accused of the entire controversy in the case.

"The proceeds of crime have been used and laundered to buy property. Cash (is) also used. There was an attempt to misguide the agency," the ED told the court.

The agency further accused Khan of non-cooperation, saying 14 summons were issued to him, and he appeared only once, that too after a Supreme Court direction.

The money laundering case against the 50-year-old legislator stems from two FIRs, one by the CBI in the Wakf Board related to alleged irregularities and another by the Delhi ACB related to a case of alleged possession of disproportionate assets.

Khan joins several other party leaders who were arrested by the federal agency in different money laundering cases, including Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, former Deputy Chief Minister Sisodia, Sanjay Singh and former minister Satyendar Jain.

Sisodia and Sanjay Singh are out of jail on bail.

The ED, which conducted raids on his premises earlier too, has claimed Khan acquired "huge proceeds of crime" in cash through illegal recruitment of staff in the Delhi Waqf Board and invested those to purchase immovable assets in the name of his associates.

The agency had alleged in a statement that "illegal recruitment" of staff took place in the Waqf Board and "illegal personal gains" were made by unfairly leasing the Waqf Board properties during Khan's chairmanship (2018-2022).

The agency filed a charge sheet in this case in January and named four people including three alleged associates of Khan -- Zeeshan Haider, Daud Nasir and Jawed Imam Siddiqui.