3 months ago
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A peculiar tribunal successful Mumbai connected Friday (February 20, 2026) granted bail to businessman Raj Kundra aft helium appeared earlier it successful a wealth laundering lawsuit linked to an alleged Bitcoin scam.
Special Judge for cases nether Prevention of Money Laundering Act R.B. Rote had successful January issued a summons to Mr. Kundra aft taking cognisance of a complaint expanse filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) successful the case.
Mr. Kundra appeared earlier the tribunal and filed a bail plea, which the tribunal allowed.
His lawyer, Prashant Patil, submitted that Mr. Kundra had cooperated with the ED's probe since 2021. All the documents related to the lawsuit were already successful the possession of the probe agency, truthful his custody was not needed, said the lawyer.
The court, portion taking cognisance of the complaint sheet, had said that the statements of witnesses and different grounds "prima-facie shows" that Mr. Kundra and Dubai-based businessman Rajesh Satija were progressive successful an offence punishable nether the PMLA.
Mr. Kundra, the cardinal probe bureau has alleged, received 285 Bitcoins from the alleged mastermind of Gain Bitcoin Ponzi scam Amit Bhardwaj for mounting up a Bitcoin mining workplace successful Ukraine.
As the woody did not materialise, Mr. Kundra was inactive successful possession of 285 Bitcoins presently valued astatine much than ₹150 crore, the ED claimed.
As per the complaint sheet, Mr. Kundra claimed to person acted lone arsenic a mediator, but did not supply "any underlying documentary grounds to beryllium the same".
An statement titled "Term Sheet" was signed betwixt him and Amit's begetter Mahendra Bhardwaj, and hence, Mr. Kundra's assertion of being lone a mediator was not tenable, the complaint expanse said.
The information that Mr. Kundra remembers the nonstop fig of Bitcoins received successful 5 circumstantial tranches 7 years aft the transaction "solidifies the information that helium was so the recipient of Bitcoins arsenic a beneficial proprietor and not acted simply arsenic a mediator", the ED said.
Despite having aggregate opportunities since 2018, Mr. Kundra failed to supply the wallet addresses wherever the 285 Bitcoins were transferred. He cited harm to his iPhone X arsenic the crushed for the missing information, which was an effort to destruct evidence, the complaint expanse said.
