The Delhi High Court has reserved its decision on a plea by Christian James Michel, a British arms consultant, seeking relaxation of bail conditions in the Enforcement Directorate (ED) case linked to the AgustaWestland chopper scam.
Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma of the Delhi High Court reserved the order after hearing arguments from the counsels representing both Christian Michel and the ED. Michel, who is currently lodged in Tihar Jail, participated in the proceedings through video conferencing.
Michel has requested the court to ease the bail condition that requires him to furnish a surety of ₹5 lakh. He has also urged the court to revoke the condition mandating the surrender of his passport. Michel's counsel argued that his passport has already expired and obtaining a new one may take four to eight weeks.
The counsel further highlighted that since Michel is a foreign national, it is unlikely that any Indian individual would come forward to stand as surety for him. It was argued that despite being granted bail, Michel continues to remain in jail due to these stringent conditions.
On the other hand, the ED's counsel opposed Michel's plea, asserting that the existing bail conditions are fair and reasonable. The ED emphasized that without a local surety, there would be no guarantee of Michel's presence in India, posing a flight risk.
Background of the Case
Christian Michel was granted bail by Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma on March 4 in the money laundering case registered by ED. This decision followed the Supreme Court's order on February 18, which granted Michel bail in the related CBI case, considering his prolonged incarceration of six years and two months.
The Supreme Court had observed that the investigation in the case was incomplete, and the trial had not yet commenced. Michel was previously denied bail in both CBI and ED cases by a coordinate bench in 2022.
Michel was arrested in December 2018 following his extradition from Dubai. He is accused of acting as a "middleman" in the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam, which involved alleged illegal transactions.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) claimed that the scam caused an estimated loss of EUR 398.21 million (approximately ₹2,666 crore) to the Indian exchequer. This loss stemmed from a deal signed on February 8, 2010, for the procurement of VVIP helicopters worth EUR 556.262 million.
The ED's chargesheet, filed in June 2016, accused Michel of receiving EUR 30 million (around ₹225 crore) from AgustaWestland as part of the illegal deal.
Case Title: Christian Michel James v. ED
