Satyendar Jain, an Aam Aadmi Party leader and Delhi minister who was detained in May of this year in connection with an alleged money laundering case, is allegedly living a lavish lifestyle in jail and trying to sway the investigation by regularly meeting the other co-accused in the case, according to CCTV footage presented today in a Delhi court by the Enforcement Directorate.
The central investigation agency said in a document that Mr. Jain receives all amenities in Tihar prison, including head, foot, and back massages. It noted that Mr. Jain, the minister responsible for prisons, abused his authority.
The ED asserted that the tape shows that Satyendar Jain and the jail superintendent meet daily, which is against the norms, and that prepared food is offered to him in jail, defying the court order.
In addition, the investigation agency said that Satyendar Jain's wife, Poonam, frequently visits him in the cell, which is against the jail code.
According to the report, Mr. Jain frequently interacts with fellow defendants Ankush and Vaibhav Jain, who are also detained at Tihar.
The ED had requested video of Satyendar Jain's cell and the ward in which he was housed, the Tihar prison management claimed.
According to the jail authorities, no outsiders entered Mr. Jain's cell. However, all the inmates in the ward can communicate with one another during the daily headcount. The co-accused being discussed lives in the same ward as Mr. Jain, so they may converse among themselves, stressing that after counting, when everyone goes to their cell, they cannot go to each other's cell.
The Tihar government has also denied that Mr. Jain has used any technological devices.
The request for an early hearing on Mr. Jain's bail application was granted on Thursday by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court at the Rouse Avenue Court complex.
Based on a First Information Report (FIR) filed by the Central Bureau of Inquiry (CBI) on August 24, 2017, the ED launched the money-laundering investigation.