While rejecting car designer Dilip Chhabria’s bail application last month in the cheating case filed against him by comedian Kapil Sharma, a metropolitan magistrate said, in his detailed order, that Chhabria's ‘conduct showed dishonest intention’.
Magistrate SB Bhajipale said that, in the case in hand, the applicant has received a handsome amount from the complainant...the applicant has not performed his part of contract within time and also has not taken steps for its performance. This conduct itself shows there was dishonest intention on part of the accused.”
Further, the court said, “The material available on record shows the involvement of the present accused in the alleged crime. The present applicant played a vital role in the commission of the offence."
The magistrate further said that ‘prime facie, requirements of crime are available on record’ and, at this juncture, his release will hamper the investigation as it is in progress.
Chhabria had claimed that he was falsely implicated in the case and had no active role in it. His advocates had told the court that he is a senior citizen and has various medical issues.
Kapil Sharma had filed a complaint against Chhabria alleging that he had paid Rs 5.3 crores to him for a vanity van between May 2017 and May 2018 and the car designer had not delivered it to him. Sharma complained that the latter had asked another Rs 40 lakhs as GST, which too he paid in July 2018. When the van was still not being delivered and Sharma approached him to return his money, he asked for another Rs 60 lakhs and said he would deliver the vehicle. The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) froze Chhabria’s account after Sharma approached it. Chhabria was arrested on December 11, 2020.
