The Supreme Court today (January 24) set aside the default bail granted to DHFL promoters Kapil Wadhawan and Dheeraj Wadhawan in the case related to the alleged multi-crore loan scam.
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NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court of India overturned the default bail previously granted to DHFL promoters Kapil Wadhawan and Dheeraj Wadhawan, involved in the high-profile multi-crore loan scam case. This decision marks a significant development in the ongoing legal proceedings against the Wadhawans.
The bench, comprising Justices Bela Trivedi and Ujjal Bhuyan, concluded that the Wadhawans could not claim the statutory right of default bail under Section 167(2) of the Cr.P.C. (Code of Criminal Procedure) on the basis that the investigation against other accused was still pending.
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The bench stated:
“We have no hesitation in holding that the charge-sheet having been filed against the respondent accused in the prescribed time limit and the cognizance had been taken by the special court of the offences alleged committed by them, the respondents could not have claimed the statutory right of default bail under Section 167 (2) of Cr.P.C. on the ground that the investigation for other accused was pending.”
This ruling came while the Supreme Court was allowing an appeal filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The Court observed that the lower courts, including the High Court and the Trial Court, had erred in granting default bail to the Wadhawans.
The trial court had initially granted default bail to the Wadhawans, noting that the charge sheet filed by the CBI seemed incomplete, merely serving as a means to defeat the accused’s statutory right to default bail under Section 167 of the Cr.P.C. This decision was based on the Supreme Court’s April 2023 judgment in Ritu Chhabaria v. Union of India, which held that an investigating officer cannot file an incomplete charge sheet to defeat the right to default bail.
However, a larger bench led by the Chief Justice of India later directed that Trial Courts should not grant default bail based on the Ritu Chhabaria judgment, a decision sought to be recalled by Central Agencies.
The FIR against the Wadhawans was lodged under various sections of the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act, based on a complaint by the DGM of Union Bank of India on behalf of a consortium of 17 banks against Diwan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd. (DHFL). The FIR alleges that the Wadhawans entered into a criminal conspiracy, cheating, and inducing the consortium to sanction loans amounting to approximately Rs. 42,000 Crores.
This Supreme Court decision is a crucial moment in the legal narrative surrounding the DHFL case, emphasizing the judiciary’s stringent stance on the application of default bail, especially in high-profile economic offenses. The full judgment is awaited for further details.
Case Details:
CENTRAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION vs. KAPIL WADHAWAN & ANR. Diary No.- 31214 – 2023
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