HC rejects plea to transfer Rs 3 crore bail deposit to Navodaya Bank

The Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court has rejected a plea seeking transfer of Rs 3 crore deposited with a special court to Navodaya Urban Co-operative Bank. The amount had been sought for settling an account with the bank under a one-time settlement (OTS), in a case linked to an alleged scam at Navodaya Urban Co-operative Bank.

The plea was filed by accused Manmohan Hingle, who is alleged to have obtained loans fraudulently in alleged collusion with the bank management.

While granting Hingle bail in 2019, the High Court had ordered him to deposit a total of Rs 3 crore with the special court as a condition, with Rs 1 crore to be deposited within seven days and the remaining Rs 2 crore within 16 weeks.

The bail condition also made clear that if the amount was not deposited within the stipulated time, the bail would be cancelled. It further stated that in such a case, the special court could also issue a non-bailable warrant against the accused.

Hingle told the court that he had fully complied with the order and deposited the entire Rs 3 crore with the special court.

Hingle then expressed his intention to settle his account with the bank through OTS. On this basis, he requested the court to permit transfer of the Rs 3 crore deposited with the special court to Navodaya Urban Co-operative Bank.

After hearing the plea, Justice Nerlikar rejected it. The court said that allowing the deposited amount to be transferred to the bank would defeat the purpose for which the original court order had directed the deposit.

Advocate Nitin Jaiswal appeared for the accused in the case, while Additional Government Pleader N. B. Jawade represented the state.