Bike Bot case: SC directs businessman be released on bail, asks him to deposit Rs 10 crore

The Supreme Court on Thursday directed that a businessman, who is in custody in connection with FIRs and complaints pertaining to the alleged Rs 3,500 crore Bike Bot scam, be forthwith released on bail and asked him to deposit Rs 10 crore as a ''pre-condition'' for the relief.

The apex court noted that the Allahabad High Court had in June this year directed release of businessman Dinesh Pandey on bail after recording a clear finding that he was not named in the FIR nor was he a director, office bearer or manager of the private firm which had launched the Bike Bot scheme in which lakhs of investors were allegedly defrauded.

Pandey's counsel said he has not been released as the police comes up with new FIRs which were not disclosed to him earlier.

The Uttar Pradesh police had earlier said that a Noida-registered company had in 2018 come out with a multi-level marketing scheme 'Bike Bot' and lured investors with a promise of double returns in a year. While granting the interim relief, a bench headed by Justice A M Khanwilkar said that Pandey shall abide by the terms and conditions imposed upon him by the high court which had granted him bail.

"Accordingly, for the reasons mentioned in the order dated July 6, 2021 of this court…..we direct the respondents (state of Uttar Pradesh and Delhi) to release the petitioner on bail forthwith on the terms and conditions specified in the bail order passed by the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad in respect of the concerned cases and for that matter even future cases to be registered, which shall be done only after taking prior permission of this court," said the bench, also comprising justices Hrishikesh Roy and C T Ravikumar.

"The petitioner shall abide by the terms and conditions stated by the high court. In addition, he shall deposit a sum of Rs 10 crores in the registry of this court which may remain invested in a Fixed Deposit Receipt with a nationalized bank, until further orders. That will be pre-condition for grant of bail," the bench said in its order.

During the arguments, the counsel appearing for Pandey told the bench that he was arrested in November last year and the high court had granted him bail in June this year.

The counsel said the state has not challenged the high court order granting bail but Pandey has not been released as the police comes up with new FIRs which were not disclosed to him earlier.

The counsel appearing for the state said there are several investors who have been defrauded by the scheme and there are series of complaints.

"You should have advised the state to challenge the high court order," the bench observed.

The petitioner's counsel said Pandey has nothing to do with the Bike Bot scheme and the allegations is that money collected from the investors were diverted in the account of his company.

"Even in the present case, it is noticed that multiple FIRs/complaints have been filed and in respect of which the petitioner is being taken into custody in succession," the bench said.

It said in case the state intends to proceed against the petitioner in connection with any other independent offence concerning the subject project, it must take prior permission of the apex court.

"We make it clear that this order will enure to the petitioner in FIRs/complaints referred to in the writ petition or any other FIRs/complaints concerning the subject project and also to other FIRs/complaints to be filed or filed, including for other provisions/enactments invoked against the petitioner on the basis of the said FIRs/complaints," the apex court said.

The bench said the petitioner shall fully cooperate with further investigation, as and when called upon to do so by the investigating officer. "We have directed the petitioner to deposit Rs 10 crores, in the peculiar facts of the present case, as no claimant has approached this court so far to set up a claim against the petitioner, as in the case of project M/s Grand Venezia Commercial Towers in which Satinder Singh Bhasin has been named," it said.

Bhasin is one of the accused in the cases pertaining to the scheme.

The bench said that it would hear the applications filed in the matter on October 1.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)