A Mumbai court has rejected the bail plea of suspected bookie Anil Jaisinghani in a case of an alleged attempt to blackmail and bribe Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis's wife Amruta Fadnavis.


On February 20, the Malabar Hill police station in south Mumbai registered an FIR against Jaisinghani and his daughter Aniksha for allegedly threatening to make public certain audio and video clips that purportedly show Fadnavis accepting favours from Aniksha, PTI reported.


The duo was booked for offenses under sections 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 385 (extortion) of the Indian Penal Code and sections 8 (induce public servant using corrupt means) and 12 (abetment) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, according to the report.


He was arrested last week from Gujarat along with his cousin Nirmal Jaisinghani. Anil Jaisinghani was sent to 14 days of judicial custody by a Mumbai court on Monday.


Aniksha, who was arrested on March 17, was granted bail in the case by a sessions court on March 27. His cousin, too, has been granted bail, according to the Indian Express. 


In a petition filed by Anil Jaisinghani in the high court, he claimed he was “illegally arrested” on March 19, but was not produced before the court within 24 hours as mandated in law.


According to his advocate, Mrigendra Singh, on Friday, told a division bench headed by Justice A S Gadkari that Jaisinghani was produced 36 hours after he was arrested. He also stated that everything was being monitored by the complainant's husband who is the state's home minister.


However, Maharashtra's Advocate General Birendra Saraf refuted these allegations and said that the police followed procedures properly and that there had been no delay to produce Jaisinghani before the court for remand. 


The police had merely taken "possession" of Jaisinghani on March 19 and they wanted to produce him before the competent court in Mumbai, PTI reported Saraf as saying. Quoting the arrest memo, he said, Jaisinghani was arrested on March 20 at 5 pm and was produced before the sessions court on March 21