SC stays Bombay HC’s bail order for DHFL promoters

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has stayed a Bombay High Court order granting bail to former Dewan Housing Finance Limited (DHFL) promoters Kapil Wadhawan and Dheeraj Wadhawan in the Enforcement Directorate’s Yes Bank scam case. 

The three-judge bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Ajay Rastogi and Aniruddha Bose said that it would examine the legal issues involved in the Wadhawans’ bail plea.

Justice Bharati Dangre of the Bombay High Court, on August 20, granted the Wadhawan siblings bail, citing late filing of the case charge-sheet by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). 

Through their legal counsel, ED officials had informed the Bombay HC that they filed the charge-sheet within the stipulated window of 60 days and a copy of the same was emailed to the court.

They were arrested by the ED on May 14 under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The lower court judge who heard the case on July 15 found that the period within which the investigation was to be completed started from May 15, that is excluding the first day of remand. The lower court had held that the two were not entitled to default bail, reasoning that the day of their remand would be excluded from calculating the statutory period of 60 days within which investigation is to be completed.

The Wadhawan brothers then approached the Bombay High Court with their plea for bail which was granted on August 20.

The apex court stayed the high court order and posted the case for hearing on October 7.

Read Also: Allahabad HC appeals to public to wear masks

The Court also issued notice on the Petition filed by the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) against the order of the Bombay High Court.

“In the meantime, there shall be interim order of stay of the impugned order till the next date,”

the bench said and sought response of the accused on ED’s plea within two weeks.

Read the order here;

– India Legal Bureau