SC agrees to hear Nawab Malik’s plea

New Delhi, April 13 : The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to hear Maharashtra Minister Nawab Malik’s plea seeking to be freedom from prison in connection with charges of money laundering. A Bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana directed that the matter be listed after hearing the arguments of senior advocate Kapil Sibal appearing for the jailed NCP leader. Sibal sought an early hearing, saying he was wrongly arrested by the Enforcement Directorate. The law under which the ED made the arrest was enforced in 2005 but the charges leveled against him pertain to transactions done in 2000. Giving its nod to hear the plea on urgent basis, the Bench said: “Yes, we will list the matter.” On February 23, when Malik was arrested, he was sent to ED custody till March 3. He has been in jail since then. The NCP spokesperson had approached the Bombay High Court seeking interim relief. The High Court rejected his plea on March 15. Thereafter, he approached the apex court. GK MR