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Delhi High Court Allows Rana Ayyub To Travel Abroad Denying ED's Plea

After the Enforcement Directorate had prevented journalist Rana Ayyub from leaving the nation through a Look Out Circular (LOC) issued in connection with an alleged money laundering case, the Delhi High Court on Monday, April 4th, allowed her to fly overseas.

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Priya Prakash
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Rana Ayyub donations fraud case, Rana Ayyub ED CASE, Rana Ayyub stopped at Airport
After the Enforcement Directorate(ED) had prevented journalist Rana Ayyub from leaving the nation through a Look Out Circular (LOC) issued in connection with an alleged money laundering case, the Delhi High Court on Monday, April 4, allowed her to fly overseas.
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Following a hearing with the parties, Justice Chandra Dhari Singh granted Ayyub's writ petition and stated that reasons would be provided shortly. The Enforcement Directorate, represented by Additional Solicitor General(ASG) SV Raju, submitted the status report requested by the Court at the previous hearing at the outset of the hearing. Ayyub's lawyer, Vrinda Grover, said that her client has been in contact with the ED on a regular basis and has always been willing to be present during questioning.

Grover also refuted the ED's claim that Ayyub declined to cooperate with the probe. She also stated that there is no evidence that Ayyub was attempting to elude or avoid the ED. According to Grover, the LOC was given on March 28 because the journalist had promoted her plans on social media. She continued by implying that her client was being penalised for raising tough questions. Grover also said that Ayyub planned to return on April 12 in response to the court's query.

ASG Raju, on the other hand, suspected Ayyub of fleeing the nation and never returning. The court then asked Raju to explain his assertions, and after a series of counter-questions, Grover said that all the paperwork pertaining to Ayyub's accounts was already with the ED's Mumbai branch, allaying fears that Ayyub would not return to India if she was allowed to travel overseas.

Suggested Reading: Journalist Rana Ayyub Is Banned From Leaving India. Here’s Why

Rana Ayyub Donations Fraud case:

On March 29, Ayyub was detained at the Mumbai airport after a Look Out Circular (LOC) was issued against her. This comes after the ED seized her assets worth Rs. 1.77 crore in connection with alleged involvement in the collection of charitable money for the COVID-19 relief effort. The ED did not want her to leave the country since it would have delayed the investigation and filing of the chargesheet in the case.

ASG Raju claimed in the last hearing that Ayyub was involved in a severe crime and had misused cash collected in the guise of relief efforts. Following a hearing with the parties, the court requested a status update from the ED and refused Ayyub any temporary relief.

The Uttar Pradesh Police filed a First Information Report (FIR) against Ayyub in September 2021, which formed the basis for this case. The complaint was brought by the Hindu IT Cell, a Hindutva organisation that claimed the journalist was unlawfully collecting money through online fundraisers. Ayyub was allegedly collecting foreign funding without government authorization, according to the group. According to the ED, Ayyub raised Rs 2, 69, 44, 680 on Ketto and used the money to construct a fixed deposit of Rs 50 lakh instead of diverting it to relief efforts.

Rana Ayyub
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