E-Paper
Mohali: Accused denied anticipatory bail in ₹3.15-cr investment fraud
After hearing all parties, the court held that both accused appeared to have played an active role in misappropriation, forgery and altering shareholding records
A Mohali court has dismissed the anticipatory bail applications of Jaswant Singh, director of ATL Biofuels India Private Limited, and Parminder Pal Singh, a chartered accountant associated with the company, in the alleged ₹3.15-crore investment fraud involving a proposed biofuel project.
The applications were filed after complainant Paramjit Singh, a retired bank employee from Mohali, alleged that he and Jaspreet Singh were cheated by company directors Avtar Singh, his son Jaswant Singh, and Parminder Pal Singh, along with two others, after being lured to invest in ATL Biofuels India Pvt Ltd on the promise of high returns, share allotment, and substantial profits.
According to the FIR, ATL Biofuels India Pvt Ltd was registered at Bairampur village, Mohali. On January 26, 2024, the complainant was appointed as a director after transferring significant funds into the company. Paramjit Singh deposited ₹65 lakh into the company’s HDFC Bank account. The complainant’s relative, Jagjit Pal Singh, transferred $25,000, $60,000, and $40,000, amounting to ₹1.26 crore, into Jaswant Singh’s personal account at the complainant’s request. Police records show that Jaswant returned ₹71 lakh, leaving ₹55 lakh unpaid, while the total investment reached ₹3.15 crore.
Court notes funds’ misappropriation, forgery
The complainants later learnt that the subsidy amount deposited with the Punjab government had been refunded in March 2025 to Jaswant Singh’s personal account. They alleged that Jaswant misappropriated the funds, transferred amounts to a woman named Rupinder Kaur, and forged the complainant’s signature on shareholder documents. The FIR states that the shareholding of Paramjit Singh was reduced from 50% to 39%, and the forged documents were uploaded on the ministry of corporate affairs (MCA) portal.
Counsel for the applicants argued that the dispute was purely civil and related to shareholding, but the complainant had given it a criminal twist.
The additional public prosecutor argued that Jaswant Singh was the main accused, whose inducement led to the complainants investing ₹3.15 crore. After hearing all parties, the court held that both accused appeared to have played an active role in misappropriation, forgery and altering shareholding records. The court noted that custodial interrogation was required to trace the money trail and uncover the broader conspiracy.
Since one earlier bail plea of Jaswant Singh had already been withdrawn and no bail order existed for Parminder Pal Singh, the court found no ground to extend anticipatory bail.
