Anil Deshmukh case: Special CBI court says statement of Sachin Waze cannot be overlooked; Bombay High Court says it lacks certainty

Two courts have taken contradictory views as regards the evidentiary weight of statements made by dismissed cop Sachin Waze with regard to the corruption and money laundering cases against Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Anil Deshmukh. .Special CBI Court last week upon the statements by Waze to deny bail to Deshmukh in the corruption case.Special judge SH Gwalani said that the statements of Waze cannot be overlooked and it established and corroborated the allegation that Waze along with others had been used by Deshmukh for collection of bribe money from bar owners.The judge specifically noted that Waze's statements played an important role at the stage of bail hearing, and that its admissibility would be looked into only at the stage of trial. “The statements which are referred above cannot be overlooked at this stage and facts discussed and disclosed by makers of those statements cannot be easily brushed off at the stage of hearing on bail application. Question of admissibility of such evidence would be a matter of trial. The sufficiency or insufficiency of evidence cannot be the basis to answer the prayer for grant of bail," the judge observed. .However, in the money laundering case registered against Deshmukh based on the same set of facts, the Bombay High Court on October 4 observed that the statements by Waze, who was a co-accused in the case, lacked certainty and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had primarily relied on his statements.“These statements ex-facie cannot bear weight of the allegation of generation of proceeds of crime out of the alleged predicate offence of exercise of influence over the transfers and postings of the police officials. These statements ex-facie lack the element of certainty as to the source, time and place. They prima facie appears to be hear-say,” the High Court recorded. It also opined that Waze’s tenure as a cop was controversial.The High Court, therefore, granted bail to Deshmukh which was later upheld by the Supreme Court as well..Deshmukh and his associates are being investigated for alleged corruption that took place between 2019 and 2021. Based on the findings of a preliminary investigation into a complaint by advocate Dr Jaishri Patil, the CBI booked Deshmukh and unknown others.Deshmukh was booked for offences punishable under Section 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act (Public servant taking gratification other than legal remuneration in respect of an official act) of the Prevention of Corruption Act).He was separately booked by the ED for money laundering under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). While he has secured bail in the money laundering case, he is yet to get bail in CBI case..[Read order].Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.