PANAJI
The High Court of Bombay at Goa on Thursday rejected the anticipatory bail plea of a Pune-based businessman in an alleged Rs 7-crore investment fraud in Goa.
The Bench of Justice S G Chapalgaonkar described the case as a “serious economic offence” where a huge amount and a large number of victims are involved, and hence ruled that custodial interrogation of Shivaji Kisan Jadhav, chairman of Soil Properties and Infra India Ltd and Soil Properties and Estate India Ltd, was necessary to establish the alleged modus operandi and trace the money trail.
According to the case details, the two companies - between 2014 and 2019 - allegedly lured several Goans to invest in fixed and recurring deposit schemes by promising high returns and making false assurances.
The investors subsequently alleged that the funds were misappropriated for personal gain, and that the accused fled without repaying the principal amounts and the promised returns. The alleged loss was then placed at Rs 7 crore approx.
The Bench held that a thorough investigation would be required to determine whether the “pitch and substance” of the allegations in the two FIRs were substantially the same and whether a fresh investigation was warranted.
“The contents of the present FIR are, prima facie, sufficient to make out a case of serious economic offence involving huge amounts of Rs 7,00,00,000 and large number of victims. The applicant being Chairman of accused Companies, his custodial interrogation would be necessary to find out modus operandi and money trail. In result, this court finds no merit in application,” the Court ordered while rejecting his anticipatory bail plea.
