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TMI Blog2025 (1) TMI 737X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... or the petitioner Mr.K.Thilageswaran would submit that in the event of completion of trial in PMLA case during the pendency of the predicate offence, the rights of the accused will be prejudiced. Therefore, the present petition is filed seeking simultaneous trial, both in PMLA case and in predicate offence registered under IPC. 4. To support the said proposition, the learned counsel for the petitioner would rely on the following judgments. 5. In the case of Deputy Director, Directorate of Enforcement, Ministry of Finance V. G.Varadharajan reported in Manu/TN1222/2024 this Court made an observation as follows : "16. We also find that the appellant / complainant had not made any attempt to invoke Section 44(1) of the PMLA as explained under the Statute. Since the predicate offence has also been pending in the same Court, the appellant / complainant ought to have asked for simultaneous trial in both the cases to avoid conflicting verdict and to avoid omission in marshalling evidence. For the reasons best known, they had allowed the PMLA case to proceed first and while doing so, also failed to place all the material documents though available to substantiate the fundamental require ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ently for deciding the same. Therefore, the contention of the learned counsel for the Petitioner/A1 that the evidence would be common in the CBI charge sheeted case as well as the case pending on the file of the Special Court for Prevention of Money Laundering is not sustainable in law. Hence, this Court is of the view that the cases, which are pending on the file of the CBI Court in connection with various offences, which were investigated in the year 2013, cannot be transferred to the Special Court for Prevention of Money Laundering as sought for by the Petitioner/A1. Consequently, this Court is not inclined to entertain the present Criminal Original Petition. However, this Court took note of the submissions made by the learned counsel for the 2nd Respondent that steps are being taken to file necessary application as per Section 44(1)(c) of the PMLA, seeking to transfer the case." 9. In the case of V.Vijay Sai Reddy v. Enforcement Directorate reported in MANU/TL/1155/2021 the High Court of Telangana held as follows : "21. Further, it is needless to state that oral and documentary evidence is the backbone to prove the guilt or innocence of the accused in a criminal trial. The t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 2018 dated 21.03.2022 held as follows : "6. The answer to the above submission of Mr.Mohan lies in explanation (i) to Section 44 of the PML Act, which clearly states that the jurisdiction of the Special Court to try a person under the PML Act, shall not be dependent upon any orders passed in respect of the predicate offence. Though this explanation has been included in the statute only subsequently, i.e., by Act 23 of 2019, its effect dates back to the coming into the force of the statute itself. It is true that the predicate offence and the PML offence should be tried by the Special Court, but, that stage has not reached at all in the instant case, because, the trial in C.C.No.3982 of 2015 has not begun. Even according to Mr.Mohan, summons have not been served on some of the accused even. 7. In Section 44(1)(a) of the PML Act, the legislature has not used the expression "cognizance by the Special Court", but, "triable by the Special Court". In the case at hand, the Magistrate has taken only cognizance of the offence inC.C.No.3982 of 2015, he may even discharge the accused or the superior Court may even quash the proceedings. Trial is said to begin in a criminal case, only aft ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ny person, directly or indirectly, as a result of specified criminal activity. The prosecution under this Act is not in relation to the criminal activity per se but limited to property derived or obtained from specified criminal activity. Resultantly, the inclusion of criminal activity which has been regarded as non-cognizable, compoundable or minor offence under the concerned legislation, should have no bearing to answer the matter in issue. In that, the offence of money- laundering is an independent offence and the persons involved in the commission of such offence are grouped together as offenders under this Act. There is no reason to make distinction between them insofar as the offence of money-laundering is concerned. In our opinion, therefore, there is no merit in the argument under consideration." 12. In the case of Sithick Raja V. Directorate of Enforcement reported in MANU/TN/1366/2024 Madurai Bench of this Court made the following observations in Paragraph 18 and 19 are as follows :- "18. Unconcluded predicate offence trial is not a bar for proceeding under the PMLA. The said grounds raised by A6 and A7 is not sustainable in view of the Supreme Court judgment in Vijay ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nishable under Section 4 and any scheduled offence connected to the offence under that Section shall be triable by the Special Court constituted for the area in which the offence has been committed : Provided that the Special Court, trying a scheduled offence before the commencement of this Act, shall continue to try such scheduled offence. (b) a Special Court may, upon a complaint made by an authority authorised in this behalf under this Act take cognizance of offence under section 3, without the accused being committed to it for trial. Provided that after conclusion of investigation, if no offence of money laundering is made out requiring filing of such complaint, the said authority shall submit a closure report before the Special Court; or (c) if the court which has taken cognizance of the scheduled offence is other than the Special Court which has taken cognizance of the complaint of the offence of money-laundering under sub-clause (b), it shall, on an application by the authority authorised to file a complaint under this Act, commit the case relating to the scheduled offence to the Special Court and the Special Court shall, on receipt of such case proceed to deal with ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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