Facts of the Case

This bail application, along with a connected criminal application, was filed by Nitin S/o Haridas Patil before the Bombay High Court's Aurangabad Bench, seeking regular bail in Crime No. 297/2023 registered under Sections 406, 409, 420, 467, 468, 471, 500, 504, 506 and 120-B of the Indian Penal Code. The case arose from a failed transaction for the sale of J.J. Fine Spun Pvt. Ltd., Akola, where the applicant, as Managing Director of that company, had agreed to sell it for Rs. 41,25,00,000. He had allegedly sought and received advance payments (totalling several crores) from the purchasers between May and July 2021, purportedly for settlement of creditor dues, to be adjusted against the sale price. This is purely a criminal-law bail matter involving IPC offences relating to a private company-sale transaction; it has no GST dimension whatsoever.

Issues Involved

  1. Whether the applicant was entitled to regular bail, given that he had already been in custody for over two-and-a-half months and the alleged offences were disputed on facts.

Petitioner's Arguments

  • Contended that even accepting the informant's version, the actual amount genuinely in dispute (after accounting for settlements) was only about Rs. 81,25,225, making it difficult to prima facie establish the more serious offences alleged; noted that relevant documents were already seized and the co-accused had already been granted bail.

Respondent's Arguments

  • The State opposed bail, relying on the serious nature of the allegations of cheating and forgery in connection with the company-sale transaction.

Court Order / Findings

  • Found it prima facie difficult to establish the offences under Sections 409, 406, 420, 467, 468 and 471 IPC on the material placed before it, given that the genuinely disputed amount was much smaller than initially portrayed.
  • Noted the applicant had already spent two-and-a-half months in custody, that relevant documents were already seized, and that the co-accused was already on bail.
  • Allowed the bail application, releasing the applicant on furnishing surety bonds of Rs. 1,00,000 each, subject to conditions including non-tampering with evidence, weekly reporting to the police station, and not leaving Maharashtra without informing the Court.
  • The connected criminal application was also disposed of.

Important Clarification

This case concerns an alleged private commercial fraud in a company-sale transaction and involves only IPC offences — there is no GST registration, invoice, or tax-evasion allegation anywhere in the order. It should not be mistaken for a GST-related judgment merely because it deals with financial fraud.

Sections Involved

  • Sections 406, 409, 420, 467, 468, 471, 500, 504, 506, 120-B, Indian Penal Code, 1860 — criminal breach of trust, cheating, forgery, criminal intimidation, and criminal conspiracy
  • Section 439, Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 — power of High Court to grant bail (implicit, as this was a regular bail application)

Decision – In Favour of

The applicant (Nitin Haridas Patil) — bail granted with conditions; the order reflects the Court's assessment for bail purposes only and does not adjudicate the truth of the underlying fraud allegations.

Case Details

High Court of Judicature at Bombay, Bench at Aurangabad; Bail Application No. 1398 of 2023 with Criminal Application No. 3150 of 2023; Coram: Hon'ble Mr. Justice S.G. Chapalgaonkar; Date of Order: 11.09.2023.

Link to Download the Order

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