Devas Multimedia money laundering case: Court refuses to accept ED plea to relook its order refusing split trial

A special court in Bengaluru refused a plea by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to recall the court’s September 4 refusal to split up the trial in a money laundering case brought against officials of the start-up firm Devas Multimedia following a failed 2005 satellite deal with ISRO’s commercial arm Antrix Corporation.

The special court, which is hearing the money laundering case against Devas Multimedia, has pulled up the ED for seeking to split the trial in the case after failing to serve summons on a US-based CEO of the firm Ramachandran Vishwanathan and a US subsidiary Devas Multimedia America Incorporated.

The court has called the ED plea for two separate trials “a shortcut” taken by the investigating agency without serious efforts to serve summons.