Anita Goyal, wife of Jet Airways founder Naresh Goyal, passed away on Thursday at a hospital in Mumbai after battling cancer. Anita Goyal passed away at around 3 am on Thursday, according to a source close to the family.
“She passed away around 3 am. She is being brought home from the hospital. Naresh Goyal is at their Mumbai residence currently," the Times of India cited the source as saying.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Naresh Goyal, 75, in September last year on allegations that he had laundered money and siphoned off loans to the tune of Rs 538.62 crore given to Jet Airways by Canara Bank.
Anita Goyal was arrested in November 2023 when the probe agency submitted its chargesheet in the case.
The Bombay High Court had recently granted the couple a two-month interim bail on medical grounds. Naresh Goyal had sought bail on both medical and humanitarian grounds as he also is a cancer patient.
During the hearing, Naresh Goyal's lawyer, senior advocate Harish Salve, appealed on humanitarian grounds, citing Goyal's physical and mental difficulties, particularly due to his wife's illness. Salve mentioned that Naresh Goyal had chosen chemotherapy over more invasive surgery to stay by his wife's side during her treatment.
The ED case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act stems from a CBI FIR against Jet Airways, Goyal, his wife Anita, and former company executives in connection with an alleged fraud of Rs 538 crore at Canara Bank. The FIR was based on the bank's complaint, alleging sanctioning credit and loans worth Rs 848.86 crore to Jet Airways, of which Rs 538.62 crore was outstanding.
