The bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y. Chandrachud, justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra stated, “We are not inclined to interfere with the high court’s order under Article 136 of the Constitution, especially since she has been in custody for 620 days.”

The Court also noted the proviso to Section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) regarding the granting of bond, which states, “Provided that a person under 16 years of age, a woman, or a sick or infirm person may be released on bail if the special court so orders.”

The apex court was hearing an appeal filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) challenging the Delhi high court’s order on the grounds that investigations revealed her “active involvement” in money laundering proceeds of crime not only as the wife of Sanjay Chandra, but also as a director in several companies located in the Cayman Islands, Singapore, and Mauritius that were used to launder the money collected from innocent homebuyers who invested in Unitech housing projects.

In order to assuage the concerns of the ED, the bench imposed additional conditions for Preeti’s parole, including that she not leave the NCR region, report to the investigating officer every two weeks, and not dispose of property without the special PMLA court’s permission.

Preeti’s counsel, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, informed the court that she had already renounced her foreign citizenship and applied for Indian citizenship. He noted that the Indian government should be requested to expedite her citizenship application because, if she loses her current citizenship, she will be rendered stateless.

In its decree, the Delhi high court ruled that Preeti must renounce her citizenship in the Dominican Republic, a nation with no extradition treaty with India.

The Supreme Court instructed Sibal, “You must renounce your citizenship.” We are aware of the amount of money that has left the country for the Cayman Islands.”

Interestingly, CJI Chandrachud was a member of the bench that ordered a forensic audit of the Unitech group, which revealed that the promoters of Unitech unlawfully diverted homebuyer funds abroad.

To afford Indian authorities time to process her request for Indian citizenship, however, “The application (for citizenship) shall be processed in accordance with the law.” The deadline for her to renounce her citizenship of the Dominican Republic has been extended by two weeks, the court ruled.

Sibal argued that the crime for which Preeti Chandra is incarcerated carries a maximum penalty of seven years in prison. She was detained on October 4, 2021, but the indictment has not yet been filed. In this scenario, he stated that there was no chance of the trial commencing shortly, so she is eligible to remain out on bail.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED), represented by additional solicitor general (ASG) SV Raju, presented the court with evidence indicating that the Unitech group diverted Rs.380 crore from the money entrusted by homebuyers and stashed it abroad through a web of companies. From this sum, Rs. 107.4 billion was transmitted to a company called Prakausali via its holding company, Mayfair, with Preeti Chandra serving as the director of both firms.

Preeti has also been accused of co-founding, supervising, and managing a front company named Trikar Group with her spouse. Between 2015 and 2018, a total of Rs.401 crore was allegedly transferred into Unitech’s Indian entities from the foreign accounts of Trikar Group in the Cayman Islands, Singapore, and Mauritius, and a quantity of Rs.401 crore was deposited into Unitech’s Indian accounts.

In response to ED’s submissions, the Supreme Court stated, “There is abundant evidence against her.” But what concerns us is that the utmost sentence is seven years, she has already spent over 600 days in custody, and the fact that she is a woman may lessen the severity of Section 45. With over 7,000 pages of documents and hundreds of witnesses to be examined, her sentence will be completed by the time the trial concludes.

ASG Raju stated that the delay in the investigation was attributable to the fact that the evidence against the accused was dispersed across several countries.

In response to his request, the bench stated that a woman’s gender does not automatically entitle her to bail, as the prosecutor felt that this order could be used as a precedent in other cases to obtain bail.

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Preeti was detained in connection with the money laundering case filed by the Enforcement Directorate in 2018 against the former promoters of Unitech, Sanjay and Amit Chandra. In March 2021, she was apprehended at the airport while attempting to escape the country.

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Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y. Chandrachud reminisced at his departure function about how his brother judge, as a member of the collegium, was instrumental in providing him with mature, practical advice on how to work with the government on judicial appointments and gave him the nickname “Tiger Shah.”

“He was a solid colleague, full of practical wisdom, mature, grounded, and middle-of-the-road advice, and he knew how to deal with others, whether they were on this side or the other,” the CJI said at the event held by the Supreme Court Bar Association to honor justice Shah.

Justice Shah was elevated to the Supreme Court in 2018, and on November 9, 2017, when Justice Chandrachud was appointed Chief Justice of India, he joined the collegium, which is comprised of the five most senior judges who recommend candidates for the Supreme Court.

The CJI praised Justice Shah’s willingness to accept all assignments, eagerness to write opinions, and capacity to continually learn. “Even the most recent constitution bench decision was returned to me with annotations in less than 48 hours,” the CJI stated.

The CJI also disclosed that the decision to conduct “paperless” court proceedings in the Delhi-Centre case prompted him to introduce Justice Shah to the laptop. He stated, “I could see Justice Shah on my right and Justice Krishna Murari on my left working feverishly on their laptops.”

Pradeep Rai, vice-president of the bar association, stated that during his time on the Supreme Court, Justice Shah authored 712 judgments, with CJI Chandrachud a distant second with 552 judgments to his name.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, Justice Shah was instrumental in pressuring state governments to compensate families who lost loved ones to the deadly coronavirus with Covid compensations. A bench composed of Justice Shah waived the compound interest charged by banks on loans during the moratorium proclaimed by lenders in March 2020, following the declaration of lockdown in the country.

“During this voyage as a judge, I have lost so many things, but I have no regrets. “At age 65, it is time for me to rediscover myself,” said Justice Shah.

“Prior to my elevation to the Supreme Court, I had never entered a courtroom except on one occasion,” said Justice Shah, who is the first judge in his family. His legal practice flourished at the Gujarat high court, his home high court where he was appointed a judge in March 2004. Before being elevated to the highest court, he became chief justice of the Patna high court in August of 2018.

On his last day in office, Justice Shah cried while reciting a couplet from Raj Kapoor’s Mera Naam Joker. Earlier in the day, he had adorned the ceremonial bench alongside CJI Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha.

justice Shah also courted controversy during his tenure by openly praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a function held in Gujarat. He was known as a no-nonsense judge who expedited the disposition of cases by maintaining a strict posture against adjournments. At the Gujarat high court’s diamond jubilee ceremony in February 2021, he referred to Modi as “our most beloved, dynamic, and visionary leader.”

Justice Shah also presided over the bench that held an emergency session on a Saturday in October to halt the parole of GN Saibaba, a former professor at Delhi University who was arrested for alleged Maoist ties. In April, the bench presided by Justice Shah ordered the Bombay high court to reconsider the case.

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The repartee and wit of Justice Shah made his court vivacious. The CJI recalled his bravery and fighting spirit in overcoming a cardiac attack the previous year. “God helped me whenever I was in trouble,” the judge Shah remarked.

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