Money laundering charges framed against TMC MP Saket Gokhale: ED

Special PMLA Court frames criminal charges against TMC MP Saket Gokhale for money laundering, denies abeyance request.

A special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) Court in Ahmedabad has framed criminal charges, under the Anti-Money Laundering law, against TMC's Rajya Sabha MP Saket Gokhale on Tuesday (August 13, 2024), the Enforcement Directorate said.

"The Ld. Principal District and Sessions Judge, Ahmedabad (Rural) and designated Special Court PMLA, Ahmedabad today framed criminal charges against Saket Gokhale, MP Rajya Sabha and national spokesperson of All India Trinamool Congress under the provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002...," the central agency said in a statement.

It said a chargesheet was filed against the 31-year-old MP under the anti-money laundering law last year.

"Charges against him for the scheduled offence in the police case (Gujarat Police) had also been framed," it said.

“The Special Court had also rejected the application filed by Mr. Gokhale under Section 309 of the CrPC for keeping the proceedings under PMLA, 2002 in abeyance till the case of scheduled offence registered against him is decided by the Court,” the ED said.

The money laundering case against Mr. Gokhale stems from a Gujarat Police FIR.

The State police arrested Mr. Gokhale from Delhi in December 2022 in a case of alleged misuse of money he had collected through crowd-funding.