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Kochhars’ arrest not according to legal mandate: Bombay HC in bail order
According to the CBI, after Chanda Kochhar became the MD & CEO, between June 2009 -Oct 2011, ICICI Bank had sanctioned Rupee Term Loan of ₹1,875 crore to six companies of Videocon Group
In a major reprieve for former MD and CEO of ICICI Bank, Chanda Kochhar and her husband Deepak Kochhar, the Bombay high court on Monday held that their arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) was not in accordance with the statutory mandate relating to arrests and ordered them to be released on interim bail.
“The reason given in the arrest memos to arrest the petitioners appears to us, to be casual, mechanical and perfunctory, clearly without application of mind,” said the bench of justice Revati Mohite Dere and justice PK Chavan.
“The ground for arrest of the petitioners (Kochhars) mentioned in the arrest memos is in clear breach of the mandatory provisions of Sections 41 and 41-A and 60-A of CrPC (Criminal Procedure Code),” the bench added and ordered the couple to be released on furnishing cash bail of ₹1 lakh each.
Also Read: Chanda Kochhar and husband - arrested in Videocon loan fraud case - to be freed
The couple is expected to come out of jail by Monday evening after completing bail formalities before the special CBI court.
The Kochhars had moved high court on December 27 for quashing of the FIR registered against them by the CBI on January 22, 2019 on various grounds.
In the petition, they had also sought a declaration that their arrest was illegal for being violative of Sections 41 and 41-A of CrPC, and as an interim measure sought their release from prison during pendency of the petition.
The provisions of the CrPC mandates that the investigating officer must record reasons for arresting an accused, explaining the need for his or her arrest, in cases where the maximum punishment extends up to seven years imprisonment.
Kochhars had contended that there was no need whatsoever to arrest them, in as much as, they had cooperated with the central agency throughout, right from the time the preliminary enquiry was registered in connection in the case till their arrest on December 24.
Their counsel also argued that the reason that, “they have not been cooperating and disclosing true and full facts of the case,” was fanciful and contrary to the facts on record.
The high court accepted their contentions.
The bench held that the grounds mentioned in the arrest memorandums of the couple were “unacceptable” and “contrary” to the reason(s)/ground(s) on which a person can be arrested i.e., contrary to the mandate of Section 41(1)(b)(ii) (a) to (e).
The bench said the reasons recorded by the (Investigating) Officer in the ground of arrest does not satisfy the tests of Section 41(1)(b)(ii) (a) to (e) of CrPC.
“It does not disclose as to whether the arrest was necessary for one or more purpose(s),” it added.
The court held that the grounds mentioned by the CBI for arresting Kochhars were also contrary to the facts of the case.
In this regard, the court noted that the facts on record revealed that Kochhars had after registration of Preliminary Enquiry in December 2017, reported to the CBI, pursuant to the summons issued to them.
The court said they not only appeared before the investigating officer, but also submitted documents, whose details are mentioned in the seizure memos.
“Admittedly, during the period, 2019 till June 2022 neither any summons was issued to the petitioners nor any communication was established by the respondent No.1– CBI with them,” said the bench.
“What was the reason to arrest the petitioners after four years is not spelt out in the arrest memos, as mandated by Section 41(1)(b)(ii) CrPC,” it added.
As regards the other part of the reasoning, the bench said not disclosing true and correct facts cannot be a reason, in as much as, the right against self-incrimination is provided for in Article 20(3) of the Constitution.
According to the CBI, after Chanda Kochhar became the MD & CEO, between June 2009 and October 2011, ICICI Bank had sanctioned Rupee Term Loan of ₹1,875 crore to six companies of Videocon Group.
The agency said, one of the loans of ₹300 crore to M/s Videocon International Electronics Limited (VIEL) was sanctioned when Chanda Kochhar headed the Sanctioning Committee of the Bank.
The loan was disbursed on September 7, 2009 and on very next date Videocon Group had through their group firm, Supreme Energy Pvt Ltd, transferred an amount of ₹64 crore to NuPower Renewables Limited, managed by Deepak Kochhar.
CBI further claimed that on April 26, 2012, the existing outstanding of the six RTL accounts were adjusted in another RTL of ₹1,730 crore sanctioned to M/S Videocon Industries Limited for “refinance of domestic debt.”
The account of M/s VIL was declared NPA with effect from June 30, 2017 and present outstanding in the a/c is ₹1,033 crore.
Deepak Kochhar was first arrested by the enforcement directorate (ED) in September 2020 in the money laundering case based on the CBI case. He was granted bail in March 2021.
