Hyderabad: The Hyderabad High Court on Monday refused to grant anticipatory bail to the directors of Musaddilal Jewellers Pvt. Ltd. who have been booked by the Income Tax department for allegedly generating advance cash receipts on the night of November 8, soon after the demonetisation announcement.
Justice M. Satyanarayana Murthy was dealing with anticipatory bail petitions by Musaddilal Jewellers Pvt. Ltd., Musaddilal Gems and Jewels (P) Ltd., Vaishnavi Billion (P) Ltd. and their directors Jithender Kumar Agarwal, Nikhil Gupta, Nitin Gupta, Seera Mallesh, Neha Gupta, Narenderji Gellaboina and Vinutha Bolla.
Counsel for the petitioners submitted that there was no need of invoking provisions under the IPC once provisions under the Income Tax Act were set into motion. Counsel said that his clients were already cooperating with the I-T authorities and prepared to pay the penalties to be imposed against them, and it was not proper to harass them by invoking the IPC.
Public Prosecutor C. Pratap Reddy said that the accused in the case were trying to dodge the case and there was inconsistency in their statements. Mr Reddy said that custodial interrogation of accused was essential in this case to find the reasons behind generating of advance cash receipts. While considering the argument, the judge dismissed the bail applications.
Relief for Market Yard officials
The Hyderabad High Court on Monday stayed an order of single judge directing the chairman and secretary of Agricultural Market Committee at Bhainsa in Adilabad to pay '3.68 crore arrears of the vacant land tax to the Bhainsa Municipality.
The single judge had granted the order while dealing with a petition by Bhainsa Municipal Council seeking to declare as illegal the failure of the respondents to clear the vacant land tax arrears to the Council.
Aggrieved by the order, the chairman and secretary of the Agricultural Market Committee moved an appeal.
On Monday, a division bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Ramesh Ranganathan and Justice Shameem Akhter, while granting the stay, remanded the matter to single judge, asking him to decide the case within six weeks.
HC extends relief given to Jagan in investments case
The Hyderabad High Court on Monday extended the interim relief granted to YSR Congress president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy exempting him of personal appearance before the Special CBI Court of the city till February 15, 2017, in the illegal investments case registered against him by the CBI.
Justice B. Siva Sankara Rao was dealing with a petition seeking exemption of Mr Reddy from personal appearance before the CBI Court on every Friday. The petition contended that it was essential for Mr Reddy to meet the people and attend the party meetings as he was the president of a political party and an elected representative.
The CBI has filed 11 chargesheets against Mr Reddy, naming him as accused No. 1 in the illegal investments case. The CBI court has been hearing the case every Friday. Also on Monday, the High Court extended the exemption of appearance before the trial court to Punith Dalmia MD of Dalmia Cements and IAS officer B.P. Acharya till February 15.
Mr Dalmia and Mr Acharya also sought relief from the High Court through a plea from appearing before the trail court on every Friday. Elsewhere on Monday, Justice M.S.K. Jaiswal recused from hearing a quash petition by Penna Group of Industries chairman P. Pratap Reddy.
Mr Pratap Reddy had moved the petition seeking quashing of criminal proceedings initiated by the CBI against him in the illegal investments case of Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy. The judge asked the Registry to place the petition before the Acting Chief Justice to list it before another judge.
