Nafr High Court · 2025
Case Details
1 2025:CGHC:3767 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR MCRC No. 7332 of 2024 Order reserved on 29/11/2024 Order delivered on 21/01/2025 Chandrabhusan Verma S/o Punaram Verma Aged About 47 Years R/o Near House Of Mla Dhanendra Sahu, Santoshi Nagar, Raipur Chhattisgarh --- Applicant versus State Of Chhattisgarh Through Additional Superintendent Of Police, Economic Offence Wing/anti Corruption Bureau, District - Raipur, Chhattisgarh (Cause title taken from Case Information System) ... Respondent For Applicant For Respondent/State : : Mr. Manoj Paranjpe, Advocate along with Mr. Shobhit Koshta, Advocate Dr. Saurabh Kumar Pande, Advocate along with Mr. Mayur Khandelwal, Panel Lawyer Hon'ble Shri Justice Ravind ra Kumar Agrawal C.A.V. Order 1. This is the first bail application filed by the applicant under Section 483 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 for grant of regular Digitally signed by VEDPRAKASH DEWANGAN 2 bail to the applicant who has been arrested on 25.04.2024 for the offence under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471, 201, 120-B of IPC, Sections 7 and 7A of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 and Sections 4, 7, 8 and 11 of the Chhattisgarh Gambling (Prohibition) Act, 2022 and Section 4A of Public Gambling Act, registered at Economic Offence Wing/Anti-Corruption Bureau, Raipur, Chhattisgarh, in Crime No. 6 of 2024. 2. The prosecution case in brief is that, an FIR of Crime No. 112/2022 registered on 29.07.2022 at Police Station Mohan Nagar, Durg (C.G.) under Section 4A of the Public Gambling (C.G. Amendment) Act, 1976, which was registered against five accused persons, namely, Alok Singh Rajput, Rampravesh Sahu, Kharag @ Raja Singh, Abhishek and Pintu, under Section 4A of the Public Gambling (C.G. Amendment) Act, 1976 and Section 420, 120B of the IPC and also for Section 66D of Information Technology Act, 2000. The Enforcement Directorate had registered the Enforcement Case Information Report (hereinafter referred as 'ECIR') No. RPZ0/10/2022. On the secret information gathered by the officers of the ED, the raid was conducted on the premises of the accused persons in which it was found that a set with a laptop and they were collecting money by creating online IDs and through the said IDs they were placing bets for others through Mahadev Book, on Online cricket matches, horse racing. greyhound racing, kabaddi etc. Upon interrogation, the accused persons disclosed the names of two persons namely Abhishek and Pintu who taught them to procedure of creating the IDs and placing bets in various sports through the 3
Facts
Mahadev Book. Initially, treating the FIR No. 112/2022 of P.S. Mohan Nagar, Durg and final report dated 29.07.2022 as scheduled/ predicate offence, the respondent ED registered the ECIR No. RPZO/09/2022 which was renumbered as ECIR No. RPZ0/10/2022 vide corrigendum dated 07.11.2022 issued by the ED. *******In the said ECIR, FIR No. 206/2023 dated 02.06.2023 registered at P.S. Cyber Crime Vishakhapatnam Commissionerate, Andhra Pradesh, FIR No. 37/2023 registered at P.S. Bhilai Bhatti, District Durg (C.G.), FIR No. 86/2023 dated 27.02.2023 registered at P.S. Chhawani, District Durg (C.G.), FIR No. 336/2023 dated 10.08.2023 registered at P.S. Gudhiyari, District Raipur (C.G.), FIR No. 685/2023 dated 11.08.2023 registered at P.S. Khamtarai, District Raipur (C.G.), FIR No. 6/2024 dated 04.03.2024 registered at EOW, Raipur (C.G.) and FIR No. 206/2020 dated 24.09.2020 registered at P.S. Burtola, Kolkata, West Bengal, have been included in the said ECIR. *******On 20.10.2023, the ED filed its first prosecution complaint against 14 accused persons, alleging that the online gambling app in the name of Mahadev Online Book is established for illegal betting in different live games like; poker, card games, chance games, betting on cricket, badminton, tennis, football, etc. and also to provide facility for playing several card games like; teen patti, dragon tiger, virtual cricket games using cards, etc. It is also alleged that the Mahadev Online Book advertised about these betting websites through closed WhatsApp groups and Facebook pages. 4 *******During the investigation conducted by the ED, it comes in the investigation that the promoters of the Mahadev Online Book, namely Sourabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal, were running the said illegal betting app through online mode and the tentacles of the online betting app have been spread wide enough and the promoters created a system of franchising the panels for illegal online betting app within the Indian territory as well as at abroad. The betting app is operated by various panel/branches, which are sold in a small franchise by the promoters Sourabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal through their associates. An elaborate system to receive incoming money from the betting user and also to pay them back as winning amount has been created in a well planned manner. They created a system that the betting user cannot directly pay money on the website and they need to contact on WhatsApp and deposit money into bank accounts in India, which have been obtained by the panel operators/promoters by way of deceiving and cheating the peoples. All centres will tag him with a panel, which will share the bank account details and create the user ID, allocate points/tokens etc. The promoters keep nearly 70-75% of the profit of the panel operations. A panel has an owner and workers who are usually four in numbers. One person can own multiple panels and there was no bar on number of panels being operated by one person. The head office is at Dubai who creates ID and password for the panel owners. The panel operator using the IDs can further create sub-IDs for player/punters. The IDs are generally created on multiple websites as depicted on the app of Mahadev online book. After receiving the 5 details of panel, the players/punters deposit the minimum amount of Rs.100/- for online betting with no maximum amount. All the games are rigged in a manner that overall, the panel owners will not lose money. During the investigation, multiple panel operators were raided, who were working under the Mahadev online book and it came on record that the said betting syndicate was generating proceeds of crime worth Rs.450 crores per month through the panel operations. It also came in the investigation that Sourabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal in the entire investigation to be the kingpin of the betting empire and indulge in money laundering with their associates. In the investigation, it also come that the said panel operations was running with active support and connivance of local police and politicians and after receiving illegal gratification, they supported the said illegal betting racket by closing their eyes. It also come that one ASI Chandrabhushan Verma who acted as Liaisoner for the Mahadev online book promoters with political executives of the Chhattisgarh State, who negotiated between them. He was collecting Hawala payments made available by the promoters of Mahadev book and distributing the same to the bureaucrats/politicians for ensuring smooth operations of the illegal betting websites. The funds have moved in and out of India to Dubai through various channels. Involvement of a number of persons were found during the investigation including the persons who engaged in layering the proceeds of crime. *******The ED, during the investigation also caught hold the Hawala kings namely Anil Kumar Dammani and Sunil Kumar Dammani. The 6 proceeds of crime generated by the main promoters are being layered and invested in order to acquire assets abroad. Large expenditure in cash is also being done in India for advertising the betting websites to attract new users and franchises. During the investigation, raids/searches were conducted at various places through which the associates of promoters of Mahadev online book, individuals associated with them, event organizers, panel operators working on commission basis for Mahadev online book, family of the promoters of Mahadev online book, Hawala operators. A huge amount was seized and frozen during the searches. *******During the investigation, it is also unveiled that ASI Chandrabhushan Verma was having role of Chief Liaisoner for Mahadev betting app in Chhattisgarh, Satish Chandrakar was operating Mahadev panel and distributing funds at the behest of Ravi Uppal, Anil Dammani and Sunil Dammani were knowingly distributing funds for Mahadev betting app, Bheem Singh and Aseem Das were involved in delivery of the Liaisoning money, Nitin Tibrewal was engaged in layering the proceeds of crime through his foreign entities and generation of illegal betting earning through sky exchange, Amit Agrawal for layering the betting earning in land transaction and Nitish Diwan for being involved in the betting operations and assisting the main promoters of Mahadev online book in their money laundering activities. *******During the investigation the involvement of the present applicant is also found that he had played an active role in laundering 7 of proceeds of crime generated out of illegal operations of Mahadev online book. He was holding assets in his name which was acquired by the benefits of Mahadev online book. He was fully aware of the illegal operations of Mahadev online book and despite that he was holding bank accounts and operating these bank accounts for routing funds. During the investigation, the mobile phones of the present applicant was impounded in which various information was extracted. He was found to be holding shares of entities beneficially owned by promoters of Mahadev online book. *******On 01.03.2024, the Enforcement Directorate have shared the information to the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Economic Offence Wing and Anti-Corruption Bureau, Raipur, Chhattisgarh under the provisions of Section 66(2) of the PMLA-2002 and disclosed the information about the ECIR No. RPZO/10/2022 and subsequent complaint filed by it. In the said information, it has been disclosed that the Mahadev online book has been running for illegal betting in different live games like poker, card games, etc. and the promoters of the Mahadev online betting app is regulating the said app from its head office at Dubai. The promoters have given franchisee of the said online betting app to various panel operators to manage the business on day-to-day basis. Along with the information, the ED annexed the documents available to them with respect to the involvement of the accused persons in the Mahadev online betting app. 8 *******On the basis of letter dated 01.03.2024, the EOW/ACB registered an FIR under the Crime No. 6/2024 on 04.03.2024 for the offence under Sections 120-B, 34, 406, 420, 467, 468, 471 of IPC, Sections 7 and 11 of Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (as amended by amendment of the year 2018), in which the present applicant has been named along with other accused persons. The applicant is arrested on 25.04.2024 and charge sheet has been filed in the case. 3.
Legal Reasoning
the role of the accused and also the prima facie evidence available against him. In the present case, there is sufficient evidence available against the present applicant that he is involved in the alleged offence and looking to the seriousness of the offence, he is not entitled to be released on bail. I have heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the material placed in the present case by both the parties. For consideration of the bail application of the applicant, the Court need not go deep inside the merits of the case, but should consider the prima facie material against the accused in the case. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in the matter of Vijay Madanlal Choudhary case (supra) has observed in para 401 of its judgment that:- 5. 6. "401. We are in agreement with the observation made by the Court in Ranjitsing Brahmajeetsing Sharma [(2005) 5 SCC 294). The Court while dealing with the application for grant of bail need not delve deep into the merits of the case and only a view of the Court based on available material on record is required. The Court will not weigh the evidence to find the guilt of the accused which is, of course, the work of Trial Court. The Court is only required to place its view 16 based on probability on the basis of reasonable material collected during the investigation and the said view will not be taken into consideration by the Trial Court in recording its finding of the guilt or acquittal during trial which is based on the evidence adduced during the trial. As explained by this Court in Nimmagadda Prasad [(2013) 7 SCC 466], the words used in Section 45 of the 2002 Act are "reasonable grounds for believing" which means the Court has to see only if there is a genuine case against the accused and the prosecution is not required to prove the charge beyond reasonable doubt." 7. In the case of Satish Jaggi Vs. State of Chhattisgarh, (2007) 11 SCC 195, the Hon'ble Supreme Court has held that "at the stage of granting of bail, the Court can only go into the question of prima facie case established for granting bail, it cannot go into the question of credibility and reliability of witnesses put up by the prosecution. The question of credibility and reliability of prosecution witnesses can only be tested during trial." 8. In the present case from the statement of Swetabh Suman Singh, it clearly reveals that the present applicant was started various firms in the name of his family members and he along with Mohammed Jasiph, Kishan Verma and others were engaged in Hawala transactions and they obtained cash amount from Anil Dammani and Sunil Dammani, who were the owner of Abhushan Jewelers and given it to the present applicant and then under the instructions of the present applicant, it has further been delivered to the bureaucrats and politicians of the State. It also comes that the present applicant made bogus entries and prepared bogus bills and vouchers of transaction of food grains in the said firms, which was physically not done and on 17 the said bogus bills/vouchers, he get the amount transaction in the bank account of firms and his relatives. Crores of rupees have been obtained by the present applicant. From the statement of Mohit Jain and Sanket Jain, who are the Chartered Accountant, the suspicious account entries have been detected. Eid Mohammed, who is the father of Mohammed Jasiph who is working with the present applicant has stated that his son Mohammed Jasiph has prepared forged bills and he engaged with the present applicant. From the statement of Dilip Kumar Agrawal, Gopalkrishna Agrawal, Vikas @ Vikki Malghani, Kamlesh Kumar Kesharwani, the preparation of forged bills and forged entries in the account without there being any physical transaction came out during the investigation. From the statement of Fingeshwari Verma, who is the wife of applicant and other family members, it also clearly reveals that the present applicant was involved in the forgery and cheating and also obtaining the legal amount through Hawala operations, who comes through Mahadev Online Book. From the account details and mobile call details and also from the document seized in the case, the involvement of the applicant is prima facie available. 9. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy Vs. CBI, reported in (2013) 7 SCC 439 has held in para 34 and 35 of its judgment that "34. Economic offences constitute a class apart and need to be visited with a different approach in the matter of bail. The economic offences having deep- rooted conspiracies and involving huge loss of public funds need to be viewed seriously and considered as 18 grave offences affecting the economy of the country as a whole and thereby posing serious threat to the financial health of the country. 35. While granting bail, the court has to keep in mind the nature of accusations, the nature of evidence in support thereof, the severity of the punishment which conviction will entail, the character of the accused, circumstances which are peculiar to the accused, reasonable possibility of securing the presence of the accused at the trial, reasonable apprehension of the witnesses being tampered with, the larger interests of the public/State and other similar considerations. 10. Hon'ble Supreme Court in the matter of Vijay Madanlal Choudhary (supra) has observed in para 398 as under :- "398. Thus, it is well settled by the various decisions of this Court and policy of the State as also the view of international community that the offence of money- laundering is committed by an individual with a deliberate design with the motive to enhance his gains, disregarding the interests of nation and society as a whole and which by no stretch of imagination can be termed as offence of trivial nature. Thus, it is in the interest of the State that law enforcement agencies should be provided with a proportionate effective mechanism so as to deal with these types of offences as the wealth of the nation is to be safeguarded from these dreaded criminals. As discussed above, the conspiracy of money-laundering, which is a three- staged process, is hatched in secrecy and executed in darkness, thus, it becomes imperative for the State to frame such a stringent law, which not only punishes the offender proportionately, but also helps in preventing the offence and creating a deterrent effect." 11. Having considered the rival submissions made by respective parties, as also from the material produced in the present case, it is not 19 acceptable that the present applicant did not know about the transactions of Mahadev online book and the money obtained by him. Denial by the applicant itself is not sufficient to consider prima facie that there is no mens rea of the applicant for the said offence either under the IPC, Chhattisgarh Gambling (Prohibition) Act, 2022 or Public Gambling Act, 1867 or under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Although the statements of the witnesses are required to be tested at the time of trial, but for the purpose of consideration of bail application, the statements of the witnesses are relevant for consideration of bail application of the applicant. Though the co- accused Sunil Dammani and Bhim Singh Yadav have been granted bail by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in ED case, but the consideration in the present offence which is registered under the IPC, Prevention of Corruption Act and Chhattisgarh Gambling (Prohibition) Act, 2022 and Public Gambling Act, 1867 are different than the consideration in ED case, therefore, no benefit could be extended to the applicant by the same. 12. As has been discussed hereinabove, it cannot be said that there is no involvement of the applicant in the offence in question. Considering the role of the applicant in obtaining the money through illegal source, which is the proceeds of crime in the Mahadev book app, it is found that there is sufficient evidence collected by the EOW/ACB to prima facie show the involvement of the applicant in the alleged offences. It is an organized crime having various facets of its complexion, therefore, further considering the nature of offence and material collected during the investigation, this Court is satisfied that 20 there is prima facie evidence for believing that the applicant is involved in the offence, therefore, I am not inclined to release the applicant on bail. 13. Consequently, the present bail application filed by the applicant- Chandrabhushan Verma is rejected. ved Sd/- (Ravindra Kumar Agrawal) Judge
Arguments
Learned counsel appearing for the applicant would submit that the investigating agency has acted most arbitrarily and it had nothing, but ill-motivated and mala fide intention to implicate the applicant in offence. He is having no connection or association in any way either with the affairs of the business of Mahadev online book or has received the proceeds of crime. He would further submit that the prosecution has failed to establish the link of present applicant with the alleged offence. He would further submit that the allegation against the present applicant in the final report that the promoters of Mahadev Book App obtained protection of various police and administrative officers and also the influential political persons to stop legal action against the criminal act of online betting app for which they given the protection money to them. The said a huge amount was paid to them through Hawala operators who used to arrange the distribution of the said illegal amount. The present applicant along with Bhim Singh Yadav and his brother Arvind Singh Yadav who all are in police service have developed relation with higher police officers. The present applicant received cash amount from the co- 9 accused Sunil Dammani and delivered it to the higher officers and politicians in the State. The present applicant used the money sent by the promoters of Mahadev Book to invest in various firms and companies started in the name of his family members. The amount delivered through Sunil Dammani was collected and delivered through Rahul Vakte and Ritesh Kumar Yadav. He had a direct nexus with Ravi Uppal who is the Director of Mahadev Book and it is also the allegation against the present applicant that he destroyed or concealed the relevant evidence. All these allegations against the present applicant are without any basis and only the oral statement of the witnesses are there. He would further submit that the applicant is suffering from schizophrenia and his treatment was continued. The minor son of the applicant namely Srijan is also suffering from Diplegia CP GMFCS and he needs constant support in his daily routine. No offence of either cheating, forgery of valuable security, using as genuine a forge document, any criminal conspiracy or even causing disappearance of any evidence. There is no sufficient material against the applicant for commission of offence under the Prevention of Corruption Act. *******The electronic evidence collected by the prosecution is very weak type of evidence, on which there is no possibility to sustain conviction of the applicant. There is no sufficient evidence in the charge sheet against the applicant that he actively involved in illegal earning through Mahadev Book. 10 *******He would further submit that in the charge sheet it is alleged against the present applicant that he gained an unfair economic advantage by various illegal means, by providing accounts on online gambling, which makes him liable to be punished for the alleged offences, but there is no specific allegation against the applicant relating to any illegal act. There is no person, who were cheated by the applicant. There is no evidence that the applicant conspired with the other co-accused persons. The applicant is in jail since 25.04.2024 and till date only charge sheet has been filed and even the charges have not been framed and therefore, there is every possibility of delay in trial. The long period of incarceration and in view of the violation of his fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution of India, the applicant is entitled for release on bail. ******He would also submit that the applicant has already been arrested by the ED and he has been arrayed as an accused in the present case on hypothetical apprehension that he also involved in illegal activities. He would further submit that in ED case, the co- accused Sunil Dammani has been granted bail by the Hon’ble Supreme Court vide its order dated 03.10.2024, passed in Criminal Appeal No. 4108 of 2024 and Bhim Singh Yadav has been granted bail vide order dated 25.10.2024 in Criminal Appeal No. 4407 of 2024, therefore considering the similar nature of allegation, he is entitled for bail in the present ACB/EOW case also. There is no person, who were cheated by the applicant. There is no evidence that the applicant conspired with the other co-accused persons. The 11 applicant is in jail since 25.04.2024 and till date only charge sheet has been filed and even the charges have not been framed and therefore, there is every possibility of delay in trial. The long period of incarceration and in view of the violation of his fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution of India, the applicant is entitled for release on bail. *******In support of his submissions, he would rely upon the judgment passed by Hon’ble Supreme Court in Satender Kumar Antil v. CBI and another, (2022) 10 SCC 51, P. Chidambaram v. Directorate of Enforcement, (2020) 13 SCC 791, Sanjay Chandra v. CBI, (2012) 1 SCC 40, Arvind Kejriwal v. Directorate of Enforcement, order dated 12.07.2024 passed in Criminal Appeal No. 2493 of 2024, Manish Sisodia v. Directorate of Enforcement, 2024 SCC OnLine SC 1920, Siddharth v. State of Uttar Pradesh, (2022) 1 SCC 676, Joginder Kumar v. State of U.P., 1994 Cr.L.J. 1981 and submitted that looking to the period of his custody, he is cooperative during the entire investigation and there is no possibility of tampering with the witnesses or document as the investigation has already been completed. Therefore, the applicant may be enlarged on bail. 4. Per contra, learned counsel for the State vehemently opposed the submissions of learned counsel for the applicant and has submitted that during the investigation, it was found that the promoters of Mahadev Online Book, who had created and online platform as an alternative to illegal betting in various live games in place of offline betting and started betting through various websites through 12 WhatsApp, Facebook and Telegram. From the illegal earning, about 70-80% of the earning were kept by the promoters and the remaining amount was given to penal operators. Their turnover was about Rs. 450 Crores monthly through online betting app. The transaction of amount was through the bank accounts, which were opened on the basis of fake documents for transaction of the said illegal earned income. The huge cash amount was spent by the promoters of Mahadev Book App on advertisement of betting websites and for that they organized ‘Star Studded’ events, in which the various Bollywood celebrities were participated. Investments have been made in various companies, shell companies and stock market and also in cryptocurrency. Another betting platform Sky Exchange was also run by Harishankar Tibrewal from whose possession the assets worth of Rs. 580 Crores were acquired through illegal earning. *******It is also submitted by him that to stop legal action against the criminal act of Online Betting App, and to obtain protection and also from influential political persons, they regularly paid huge amount in the form of protection money, which routed through Hawala Operations. He would further submit that the present applicant was the Assistant Sub-Inspector of Police and was posted at Raipur. He formed various firms in the name of his relatives and associates i.e. Srijan Ventures, Shriti Sales, Srijan Consultancy Services, Adarsh Sales, Srishti Tours and Travels, Srijan Trading Company, Aditya Trading Company, Srijan Associates, Srijan Enterprises Pvt. Ltd. and M.K. Enterprises. When the correspondences were made with the Registrar of Firms and Societies, Raipur, it is informed that the said 13 firms were not registered. It is also comes during the investigation that along with the present applicant, his associates Kishan Verma, Rahul Vakte, Ritesh Yadav, Mohammed Jasiph were prepared bogus bills, vouchers, invoices showing trading of Food Grains to other firms, which was physically not done and by that they shown the business of approximately Rs. 54,32,26,466/- in various bank accounts. These transactions have also been made through Hawala operations by the operators of Mahadev Book. The bank account of the firms operated in the name of relatives of the present applicant shown the deposition of Rs. 4,09,11,497.75. From the statement of his family members, it also revealed that they made correspondences with bank in the capacity of Director of the firm under the instructions of present applicant and the said firms are managed by the present applicant. *******The present applicant has purchased various properties in various places in the name of his family members/firms. He was in constant touch with co-accused persons and obtained huge amount through Hawala operation which was sent by Sourabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal for smooth operation of the online betting platform. He being a public servant was involved in other illegal activities apart from his official duty and associated with the other co-accused persons. *******He would further submit that from the statement of Swetabh Suman Singh, Mohit Jain, Sanket Jain, Eid Mohammed, Dilip Kumar Agrawal, Gopalkrishna Agrawal, Vikas @ Vikki Malghani, Kamlesh 14 Kesharwani, Smt. Fingeshwari Verma, Smt. Yashoda Verma, Smt. Mukeshwari Verma, Poonaram Verma, Shivkumar Verma, Manish Verma, Suresh Golchha, Rohit Dawani, Roopchand Tandan, Kamal Kishore Daga, Dipak Daga and Naresh Kumar Navlani and also from the CDR analysis report, information sought from Registrar, Firms and Societies and State Tax Department, the involvement of the present applicant in the offence in question is found and therefore he has been arrested and charge sheet has been filed. *******He would also submit that when the EOW/ACB received an information of cognizable offence, he has to register the FIR as per the direction issued by Hon’ble Supreme Court in case of Lalita Kumari v. Government of Uttar Pradesh and Ors. (2008) 7 SCC 164. The ECIR is not an FIR, but is a complaint. He would further submit that for commission of offence under Section 3 of PMLA, it is not necessary that a person must also commit the predicate offence. He would also submit that the involvement in the criminal activity is the relevant consideration. A person can be held guilty in money laundering, even if he is not named in the scheduled offence. In support of his contention, he relied upon the case of Vijay Madanlal Choudhary v. Union of India, 2022 SCC OnLine SC 929. In the present case, the offence under the money laundering act is not akin to the offence of IPC or the Prevention of Corruption Act. The offence of money laundering is entirely different from the offence of cheating or forgery of the valuable security/document. He would also relied upon the judgment passed by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the matter of State Through CBI v. Anil Sharma, (1997), 7 SCC 187, in 15 which the Hon’ble Supreme Court has considered that the custodial interrogation is a qualitative method of interrogation and ED has only shared certain information with the EOW/ACB, and it is for the EOW/ACB to interrogate the allegations of the information. Therefore, there is need to arrest to the applicant and to interrogate him. While considering the bail application, the allegations in the charge sheet against the applicant is the relevant consideration and