HYDERABAD: In an issue related to the transfer of Nazribagh Palace at King Koti, which was the residence of the last Nizam of Hyderabad, the Telangana High Court on Thursday was not inclined to grant any relief to alleged fraudster Sukesh Gupta, promoter of MBS Jewellers, and two of his aides, P. Suresh Kumar and Mohammed Usman.
A division bench, comprising Chief Justice Hima Kohli and Justice M.S. Ramachandra Rao, rejected the plea of the three, who had requested protective orders against initiating coercive steps or their arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in Hyderabad. The ED had lodged an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) against the petitioners pertaining to a loan taken in 2009 for purchasing the palace by Bombay-based Niharika Constructions.
Two senior counsels from Delhi, Mukul Rohatgi and Diljit Singh Ahluwalia, represented Sukesh Gupta and the other accused. They requested for either quashing the ECIR or directing authorities not to take coercive steps against the three. They contended that ED had no authority to file the case under the provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act, as there was no instance of cheating the banks or causing loss to government revenue.
It was purely a memorandum of understanding between two private parties for purchase of the palace, and there was no scope for the ED to interfere, Rohatgi argued.
However, Chief Justice Hima Kohli was not convinced with the contentions raised by counsels and rejected the plea for protective orders.
Meanwhile, T. Suryakaran Reddy, additional solicitor-general of India, representing the Enforcement Directorate, informed the court that the ECIR pending in Hyderabad will be transferred to ED at Mumbai, whereas, it has already lodged a case and has arrested some persons involved in the case.
As there was no possibility of orders favouring them, the petitioners have withdrawn their petitions. Recently, they had withdrawn the quash petitions they had.
The basic facts are that SREI, a private finance limited company, had in 2009 lent Rs 48 crore to Niharika Infrastructure, in which Suresh Kumar was a director, for purchasing the century-old heritage property. There was an allegation that dues were not paid and the palace was registered to a third party. There are charges that Sukesh Gupta, who is an investor in Niharika Group, was involved in lending company money to the group.
