A bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and A.G. Masih allowed Jacqueline to re-approach the Court at an appropriate trial stage but refused immediate relief.
BY PC Bureau
September 22: The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed Bollywood actress Jacqueline Fernandez’s plea seeking to quash proceedings in the ₹200 crore money laundering case linked to alleged conman Sukesh Chandrasekhar.
Fernandez had approached the apex court after the Delhi High Court rejected her plea in July. A bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and A.G. Masih declined to interfere, but allowed her to approach the Court again at an appropriate stage of trial.
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Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing Fernandez, argued that the prosecution’s case rested on the allegation that she should have been “more careful” in accepting gifts from Sukesh. He pointed out that the law under Section 3 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) requires knowledge of the predicate offence. “I must know that this man is extorting… Otherwise I would be an accused in the main case,” Rohatgi submitted, adding that Fernandez was presented as a prosecution witness in the related MCOCA case.
Justice Datta, however, referred to the Vijay Madanlal Choudhary judgment, which upheld PMLA provisions, and observed: “At the stage of framing of charges, you have to accept the allegation. Nothing has been proved yet. If one friend gives gifts to another, and it turns out proceeds are linked to a predicate offence, it becomes difficult. We are bound by Vijay Madanlal.”
Actor Jacqueline Fernandez withdraws from Supreme Court her plea against a Delhi High Court order refusing to quash money laundering proceedings against her in the Rs 215-crore case involving alleged conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar.
Supreme Court says Fernandez can approach the… pic.twitter.com/10kM7Tpqun
— ANI (@ANI) September 22, 2025
The Court clarified that the High Court’s earlier observations dismissing Fernandez’s plea were limited to the quashing petition and would not prejudice her trial. It concluded: “Dismissed with liberty to approach the Court. At the time of framing charges, the special court shall be free to hear the petitioner and pass appropriate orders.”
To recap, Fernandez had sought quashing of the Enforcement Directorate’s ECIR and the second supplementary complaint naming her as the 10th accused. She maintained she was an “innocent victim” of Sukesh’s targeted manipulation, facilitated by alleged lapses that gave him unrestricted access to phones and technology inside Tihar Jail.
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In July, Justice Anish Dayal of the Delhi High Court rejected her plea, ruling that fears of self-incrimination could not justify quashing proceedings since constitutional protections exist, and that the issues she raised must be tested in trial.
