Mumbai: Bombay HC grants pre-arrest bail to BJP leader Pravin Darekar in bank fraud case

In a relief for BJP MLA Pravin Darekar, the Bombay High Court on Tuesday granted him pre arrest bail in an alleged bank fraud case.

Justice Anuja Prabhudessai, while allowing Darekar's anticipatory bail plea, said: "In the event of arrest, he’s to be released on personal bond of Rs 50,000." The Court had also directed Darekar to cooperate with the investigation.

The HC was hearing an anticipatory bail filed by Darekar after the same was rejected by the sessions court recently.

The Sessions Court, in a detailed order rejecting his pre arrest bail, had said that he is an influential person and if he is equipped with such an order before being interrogated by the police, it would greatly harm the investigation and public interest would suffer as a consequence.

Darekar appeared before Mumbai police on Monday to record his statement for the second time in a case of alleged false declaration in connection with a bank poll. Before this, Darekar had appeared namaste on April 4 to record his statement.

Mumbai police had lodged a case after AAP leader Dhananjay Shinde alleged that the former had shown himself as a labourer to fight the directorship polls of a Mumbai-based cooperative bank.