The Delhi High Court has granted bail to Anil Kumar Sharma, the former CMD of the Amrapali Group of Companies, who was arrested in connection with a case of alleged cheating of homebuyers.
A single bench of Justice Vikas Mahajan noted that the charge sheet listed 50 witnesses for the prosecution, indicating a lengthy trial ahead. Keeping this in mind, the court concluded that detaining Sharma would not serve any useful purpose.
Referring to the Supreme Court’s perspective on the matter and considering that Sharma has already spent more than half of the maximum imprisonment period specified for the offense under Section 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the court held that Sharma is entitled to the benefits under Section 436A of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), which the Supreme Court has deemed mandatory.
The case stemmed from an FIR filed by the economic offenses wing (EOW) of the Delhi Police based on a complaint from Anubhav Jain, who had purchased 26 flats in Tower G-1 of Sharma’s project ‘Amrapali Silicon City’ in Sector 76, Noida. Investigation revealed that Tower G-1 had not been sanctioned by the Noida Authority, and in a criminal conspiracy, Sharma had sold or allocated 26 flats in the tower to the complainant. Jain had been induced by the accused and had made full payment of Rs 6.6 crore for the flats in November 2011.
Sharma, along with two co-accused, Shiv Priya and Ajay Kumar, was arrested on February 28, 2019.
Senior advocate Pramod Kumar Dubey, representing Sharma, argued that the maximum sentence for the offense of cheating under Section 420 IPC is seven years, and since Sharma had been in custody for more than three years and six months, he was entitled to statutory bail under Section 436A CrPC.
The prosecution opposed the bail plea, characterizing it as a “multi-victim scam” and contending that Section 436A should not be applied to the accused.
Section 436A CrPC allows for the release of a person from custody if they have served more than half of the maximum sentence prescribed for the offense.
The Delhi High Court granted bail to Sharma on the condition that he furnishes a personal bond of Rs one lakh and two sureties of the same amount. Additionally, he is not permitted to leave the city without the court’s prior permission and must appear before the trial court whenever the case is scheduled for a hearing. Furthermore, the high court ordered Sharma to refrain from engaging in any criminal activity and from communicating with or contacting the victim, complainant, or their family members.
