Jacqueline Fernandez withdraws plea from Supreme Court in money laundering case

4 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Jun 25, 2026 04:33 PM IST

Actor Jacqueline Fernandez withdrew her Supreme Court plea challenging trial court proceedings in the Rs 200-crore money laundering case (Photo: Jacqueline Fernandez/Instagram).

Bollywood actor Jacqueline Fernandez Thursday withdrew from the Supreme Court her plea challenging the trial court proceedings in the Rs 200-crore money laundering case involving alleged conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar.

The counsel appearing for Fernandez urged a bench of Justices B V Nagarathna and Joymalya Bagchi to allow her to withdraw the appeal challenging the special court order framing charges against her and others in the case investigated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), while also reserving her right to avail of the appropriate remedies available in law. The bench allowed the request and dismissed the appeal as withdrawn.

The ED case stems from the extortion case filed by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Delhi Police in August 2022 against Chandrashekhar for allegedly cheating and extorting money from Aditi Singh, the wife of former Fortis Healthcare promoter Shivinder Singh, by posing as the Union law secretary and calling her with an offer to bail her jailed husband.

Fernandez has been named as a co-accused in the ED case for allegedly receiving “proceeds of crime” as gifts from Chandrashekhar. Though Fernandez attempted to turn approver in the case, claiming she was also a victim, the central agency opposed this.

It said she chose to continue to “enjoy the proceeds of crime for herself and her family members, thereby demonstrating a conscious disregard for the source of funds and actively participating in the money laundering process”. The actor subsequently withdrew her plea to turn approver.

On May 30, the special court framed money laundering charges against Fernandez, Chandrashekhar and other accused, saying there was enough material on record to prima facie suspect their roles. Following this, she moved the Supreme Court.

The actor had also moved the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court seeking an order to cancel the case, but failed to get any relief.

Story continues below this ad

Jacqueline Fernandez money laundering case: A timeline

August 2021: Delhi Police Economic Offences Wing (EOW) registered an FIR against Sukesh Chandrashekhar for allegedly extorting Rs 200 crore from Aditi Singh.

August–October 2021: ED summoned and questioned Jacqueline Fernandez multiple times.

December 2021: ED filed its primary chargesheet, alleging that Fernandez received luxury items worth over Rs 5.71 crore via international hawala networks.

April 2022: ED provisionally attached assets worth Rs 7.27 crore belonging to Fernandez, including a fixed deposit.

Story continues below this ad

August 2022: ED named Fernandez as an accused for the first time in a supplementary chargesheet. The agency claimed she chose to overlook Chandrashekhar’s criminal records and intentionally deleted mobile evidence.

November 2022: A Delhi Court granted regular bail to Fernandez on a Rs 2 lakh personal bond, restricting her from leaving India without judicial clearance

January 2023: Fernandez released a court statement detailing how Chandrashekhar “made her life hell, ruined her career and livelihood”.

December 2023–February 2024: Fernandez approached the Delhi Police Commissioner, seeking protection and an intervention.

Story continues below this ad

September 2025: The Supreme Court refused to intervene when Fernandez challenged a Delhi High Court order that dismissed her plea to quash the money laundering case against her.

April 2026: Fernandez filed a legal plea to turn approver in the extortion case. However, he withdrew the plea to be an approver in May 2026.

May 30, 2026: Patiala House Court ordered the official framing of criminal charges against Fernandez, Chandrashekhar, and 15 others,

June 3, 2026: Fernandez appeared in person before the Special Judge, pleaded not guilty, and declared her intent to contest all criminal charges during the active trial.

June 25, 2026: The Supreme Court permitted Fernandez to withdraw her Special Leave Petition (SLP) challenging the trial court’s order to frame charges.