Mumbai: A Sessions Court in Mumbai has granted bail to a Mumbra resident who was arrested last year by the Byculla police for allegedly possessing counterfeit currency notes. The court observed that the investigation papers do not indicate his involvement in the manufacturing of the fake currency.
The accused, Umran alias Asif Amar Balbale, was arrested in 2025 in connection with a counterfeit currency racket. While granting him bail, the court noted that the material placed on record only suggested that counterfeit notes were recovered during a search at his residence and did not establish his role in producing the fake currency.
“I have gone through the entire investigating papers i.e. chargesheet. Record shows allegations against applicant/accused is that the investigating agency found counterfeit currency notes during the house search of the accused. However, investigation papers do not show involvement of this applicant in manufacturing the counterfeit currency notes or that such manufacturing was carried out with his knowledge,” the court observed.
The court also took note of the fact that the co-accused in the case had already been granted bail in April 2025 and held that the principle of parity would apply in the present case.
The judge further observed that the investigation has been completed and the chargesheet has already been filed. The prosecution has cited more than 35 witnesses, while the expert report in the case is still awaited. Considering the stage of the case and the nature of allegations, the court held that it would not be justified to keep the accused in custody for an indefinite period without the commencement of an effective trial.
“Therefore, considering all above aspects, nature of allegations against accused, stage of the matter and ground of parity, it is not just and proper to keep accused behind bar for further indefinite period without effective trial,” the court stated in its order.
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Balbale was represented by advocate Ganesh Nagargoje, who argued in the bail application that his client had been falsely implicated and that there was no documentary evidence linking him to the alleged manufacturing of counterfeit notes.
According to the prosecution, on January 9, 2025, officials from the Crime Branch conducted a raid near A.G. Pawar Lane in Mumbai, during which the accused and his associates were allegedly found in possession of two bundles of counterfeit currency notes. The police had recovered 200 fake Rs 500 notes from the possession of the accused. Subsequent investigations led the police to an alleged manufacturing setup in Wada in Palghar district, which investigators claim was being operated by an absconding suspect identified as Khalid Ansari.
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