Another HC judge recuses from hearing HDFC Bank CEO’s plea for quashing FIR

The Lilavati Hospital trust had alleged that Sashidhar Jagdishan had accepted kickbacks worth ₹2.05 crore in exchange for providing financial advice to help erstwhile trustees retain illegal control of the trust

MUMBAI: A fourth judge from the Bombay high court has recused himself from hearing a plea filed by the chief executive and managing director of HDFC Bank, Sashidhar Jagdishan, to quash a bribery case registered against him by the trust that manages the city’s prominent Lilavati Hospital.

HDFC Bank CEO Sashidhar Jagdishan had approached the high court for quashing the FIR against him, arguing that it was baseless and malicious.

The Lilavati Kirtilal Mehta Medical Trust had alleged that Jagdishan had accepted kickbacks worth ₹2.05 crore in exchange for providing financial advice to help the hospital’s erstwhile trustees, including a certain Chetan Mehta, retain illegal control of the trust. Jagdishan had then approached the high court for quashing the FIR, arguing that it was baseless and malicious.

When the matter came up before a division bench of justices Ravindra Ghuge and Gautam Ankhad on Wednesday, the latter recused himself from hearing it, without explaining why. After both parties did not raise an objection to the recusal, it was decided that the matter would be placed before another bench that justice Ankhad is not a part of.

“Since brother Justice Gautam A. Ankhad recuses from hearing these matters, these matters would not be placed before the bench of which one of us is a member,” said justice Ghuge.

Three other judges had earlier recused themselves from hearing Jagdishan’s plea.

The case was first listed before a bench of justices Ajey Gadkari and Rajesh Patil on June 18, the day Jagdishan moved the high court to quash the FIR. Justice Patil, however, recused himself from hearing the matter. “My brother (justice Patil) does not take up matters relating to HDFC,” justice Gadkari had said, without elaborating further.

The matter was then mentioned before a bench led by justice Sarang Kotwal. However, he, too, recused himself without providing an explanation.

On June 26, when the matter was listed before a bench of justices MS Sonak and Jitendra Jain, the latter disclosed that he held shares of HDFC Bank. Advocate Nitin Pradhan, the counsel for the trust’s authorised representative, Prashant Mehta, objected to this, following which justice Jain recused himself from the matter.

Following this, Jagdishan approached the Supreme Court for relief, saying he hadn’t got a hearing in the Bombay high court for the last three weeks. He also claimed that he had nothing to do with the matter and it was affecting his personal reputation.

A bench of justices PS Narasimha and R Mahadevan on July 4 did not entertain his plea, observing that the matter is already listed for hearing on July 14 before the Bombay high court. “We are not inclined to entertain the matter. We will not apply our mind to the merits. If the matter is not heard on the 14th, you come back. We hope and trust that the high court will take the matter up on the designated date,” the bench said.

However, following justice Ankhad’s recusal, the matter is now unlikely to be heard in the high court on July 14.

Earlier, seven other high court judges—justices Revati Mohite Dere, GS Kulkarni, Arif Doctor, BP Colabawalla, MM Sathaye, RI Chagla and Sharmila Deshmukh—had recused themselves from hearing matters related to Lilavati Hospital on account of their past associations with the trust.

The FIR against Jagdishan was registered on June 18, invoking serious charges under the Indian Penal Code, including sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 409 (criminal breach of trust by a public servant) and 420 (cheating).