Mumbai builder Anubhav Agarwal gets interim bail in money laundering case

A Mumbai court has granted interim bail to Mumbai-based builder Anubhav Agarwal in a money laundering case involving Bihar IAS officer Sanjeev Hans and RJD MLA Gulab Yadav. The special court rejected the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) remand application against Agarwal, who is the Managing Director of RNA Developers.
Agarwal was arrested in Mumbai on Friday by the Patna unit of the Enforcement Directorate.
The central anti-money laundering agency, represented by Special Public Prosecutor KC Prushty, sought to take Agarwal to Patna and present him before a court there for further investigation into Hans.
Agarwal’s counsels, Vikram Nankani and Sajal Yadav, argued that constitutional provisions and laws requiring an accused to be produced before a court within 24 hours of arrest had been violated. They claimed that while Agarwal’s arrest was officially recorded around 11 pm on November 5, his movements had been restricted since 6 am, and thus the 24-hour window should be calculated from the earlier time.
Special Judge NG Shukla, after hearing the arguments, rejected the ED’s remand plea and granted bail to Agarwal, instructing him not to leave Mumbai without the court’s permission. Agarwal was also directed to cooperate with the investigating agency, even if summoned to Patna.
The court specified that the interim bail would remain in effect until Agarwal approached the regular court for bail.
The ED case originates from a rape and sexual assault complaint filed by a lawyer against IAS officer Hans and Yadav in Patna in January 2023. The agency had registered an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) and initiated an investigation into the money laundering aspect, implicating Yadav, Hans, and 12 others.
The ED alleges that Hans acquired illicit wealth through corrupt and criminal activities while holding various key positions in the Bihar government. The agency further claims that Agarwal was central to efforts aimed at securing a favourable outcome for his group’s company, East and West Builders, in a case pending before the National Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission.
According to the ED, Vipul Bansal, a college friend of Hans who worked with Agarwal, facilitated these efforts. Bansal reportedly stated that he arranged for Rs 1 crore to be delivered to Hans through intermediaries, and WhatsApp chats related to this transaction were allegedly found on Hans’s phone.