The Bombay High Court, on February 19, declared the arrest of former ICICI Bank MD Chanda Kochhar and her husband Deepak Kochhar by the CBI in a loan fraud case as an “abuse of power.” Emphasizing the lack of justification and citing the right to silence.
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On 19th February, the Bombay High Court delivered a significant verdict, declaring the December 2022 arrest of former ICICI Bank Managing Director Chanda Kochhar and her husband Deepak Kochhar by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in a loan fraud case as an “abuse of power.” The court emphasized that the arrest was carried out “without application of mind and due regard to the law.”
In its detailed order, the High Court expressed its concern over the lack of proper justification for the arrest, stating-
“such routine arrest without application of mind and due regard to the law amounts to an abuse of power.”
The court further asserted that the CBI failed to “demonstrate the existence of circumstances or supportive material” justifying the arrest, deeming it illegal.
“The absence of such circumstances renders the arrest illegal,”
– the court added,
Underscoring the gravity of the procedural lapse in the arrest of the Kochhars. The court also rejected the CBI’s argument that the Kochhars were non-cooperative during the investigation, invoking the “right to silence” protected by Article 20(3) of the Indian Constitution, which safeguards an accused individual’s right against self-incrimination.
“Suffice it to say that exercise of the right to remain silent cannot be equated with non-cooperation,”
– the court affirmed,
Highlighting the significance of respecting the legal rights of the accused. As an interim measure, the Bombay High Court had previously granted Kochhar interim bail, acknowledging a prima facie case for illegal arrest.
The CBI, in its FIR, named Chanda Kochhar, Deepak Kochhar, Videocon chief Venugooal Dhoot, and several companies including Nupower Renewables (NRL), Supreme Energy, Videocon International Electronics Ltd, and Videocon Industries as accused under sections related to criminal conspiracy and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA).
Dhoot, also arrested in the case, was granted bail in January 2023. The High Court’s declaration of the arrest as illegal stems from its scrutiny of the CBI’s failure to present valid grounds for arrest, rendering the provision to a “dead letter.”
The court referenced the right to silence under Article 20(3) and the introduction of section 41A of the Code of Criminal Procedure, limiting routine arrests when an accused complies with a police notice for questioning.
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The bench pointed out that the FIR against the Kochhars was registered in 2019, and they were summoned for questioning only in 2022. Despite the gravity of the offence, the petitioners were not interrogated for over three years from the date of the crime’s registration.
The court concluded that, since June 2022, the Kochhars have been cooperating with the CBI as and when notices under section 41A were issued to them.
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