Bombay HC refuses urgent relief to BJP MLC Pravin Darekar in alleged Mumbai Bank scam case

In a setback for leader of opposition in the state council Pravin Darekar (BJP), the Bombay High Court on Wednesday refused to entertain his plea seeking quashing of the FIR registered against him in connection with an alleged Mumbai Bank scam case.

A division bench of justices PB Varale and SM Modak refused to entertain Darekar's plea seeking quashing of the case saying that he had alternate remedy. Darekar's counsels had mentioned the petition before the HC seeking urgent hearing.

Turning down his request for urgent hearing for quashing of the FIR and no coercive steps in the interim, the court asked him to exercise the alternate remedy first. The HC has, however, kept his petition for hearing after two weeks.

Darekar has the remedy of approaching the sessions court seeking pre-arrest bail in the case before approaching the HC.

The police have filed FIR on a complaint by the Aam Aadmi Party leader Dhananjay Shinde against Darekar alleging that the latter forged certain documents to become a member of Pratigya Labour Cooperative Society.

He has further contended that the criminal prosecution is initiated “under the influence of the state government to stop him from making allegations regarding corruption by the state government”. His petition alleges that since two state ministers – Anil Deshmukh and Nawab Malik – have been arrested, the government has deliberately filed the FIR with malafide intentions.

Shinde has accused Darekar of using bogus membership of a labour organisation to get directorship at the Mumbai Bank and alleged that there was fraud and irregularities in the bank during his tenure. He further alleged that Darekar, who was the Mumbai Bank Chairman from 2011 to 2021, posed as a labourer which was later found wrong.

Darekar has claimed that he was a member of the Society since 1997 and was working as a labourer. Besides, he has said that till 2017 has “contributed to the Society as a labour”. Further, he has said that under the Maharashtra co-operative Societies Act, 1860, the definition of “labour” does not mention about the person’s income.

Earlier, in January this year, the Joint Registrar of Cooperative Societies had disqualified Darekar as a member of the Pratigya Labour Society. He challenged this before the Cooperative Housing Society Minister.

Based on these details, an FIR was filed against him in 2015. after investigation, the police filed a “C” Summary report (Case is neither true nor false) before the magistrate. Even the complainant in the case had not opposed the report. However, the magistrate rejected the “C” Summary report and directed further investigation.

The HC, in last November, granted relief to Darekar and restrained police from taking any coercive steps against him.