Punjab and Haryana High Court heard a petition filed by AAP leader Sanjeev Arora against his arrest by Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday in an alleged money laundering and fake export case and in his petition he has said that his arrest was illegal and that remand given after arrest was also not proper.
The main hearing in court today focused on whether ED followed correct legal process while arresting the minister and taking him into custody.
Senior advocate Puneet Bali appeared in court for Sanjeev Arora and argued that ED did not properly follow the rules during the arrest process and the defence side raised questions over how agency carried out the arrest and later got custody remand from court.
During the hearing Arora’s lawyer asked High Court to closely look into entire process followed by ED and defence argued that legal procedure may not have been properly followed while arresting the minister while ED side also presented its arguments before court and after hearing both sides High Court said that the matter needs more detailed hearing and further arguments before any decision can be taken.
The court then adjourned the case and fixed next hearing for May 14, 2026 and no major relief was given to the minister during today’s hearing and the matter will now come up again before High Court later this week.
The agency has alleged that firms linked to Arora were involved in fake mobile purchase sales and bogus exports amounting to nearly Rs 157.12 crore through a network of shell companies. Investigators claim the alleged transactions were used for illegal round-tripping of funds from Dubai to India.
According to the ED, fake GST purchase bills were allegedly procured from non-existent Delhi-based firms to claim fraudulent Input Tax Credit (ITC), GST refunds and duty drawback benefits, causing losses to the government exchequer while generating personal gains.
ED sources further stated that bank accounts, demat holdings and immovable assets linked to Hampton Sky Realty Limited and entities associated with Sanjeev Arora have been provisionally attached. The attachment orders were reportedly issued on April 19 under provisions of FEMA and the Income Tax Act for a period of 180 days to facilitate the ongoing investigation.
