Latest news with #HemangShah
India Today
a day ago
- India Today
Cops acted in haste: High Court declares Anchor Group director's arrest illegal
The Bombay High Court has declared the arrest of Hemang Shah, the 50-year-old director of Anchor Group, illegal and has reprimanded the police for acting in undue was arrested on allegations of financial fraud levelled by his elder brother Mehul Shah. He was detained at Delhi airport on May 17 while attempting to travel to Oman's Muscat based on the LOC issued against him, and was then brought to Mumbai. According to prosecutors, a formal arrest was made the next its judgment, the High Court ruled there was no necessity to detain Shah in a display of "zeal and enthusiasm", and suggested that the arrest appeared to be aimed at recovering a disputed financial sum. The court came down heavily on the conduct of the police, observing that the registration of the complaint at 2.14 am on May 14 - just after midnight - and the issuance of a Look-Out Circular (LOC) the same day reflected "alarming urgency".Shah filed a petition before the Bombay High Court challenging his arrest. Representing Shah were a legal team comprising senior advocate Ravi Prakash and advocates Munaf Virjee, Aditya Dewan, Debopriyo Moulik and Sagar Shetty, who appeared along with AMR Law and Hrituraj plea argued that the matter was a financial dispute between Shah and his elder brother, Mehul, and father, and attempts were being made to resolve it through said that immediately after Shah's arrest, Mehul Shah's wife contacted Hemang Shah's wife, pressuring her to bring a cheque book to the office of the Economic Offences Wing (EOW). Chat messages allegedly evidencing this were submitted before the reviewing these chats, the bench concluded that "the objective behind the petitioner's custody was the recovery of the amount being negotiated through mediation".Shah also claimed he was detained at Delhi airport around 5.30 pm on May 17 and was produced before a magistrate at 10.45 pm the next day - over 24 hours later - making the custody unlawful. While he was informed of the grounds for his arrest, no relative, friend, or nominated person was notified, his legal team contended. They alleged that the arrest was used as a tool to coerce and pressure prosecution argued that Shah and the EOW officials reached Mumbai at 10.30 am on May 18, following which he was formally arrested at 7.30 pm and produced before the court later that night. They also claimed Shah's father was informed about the the court rejected the prosecution's argument, calling it "astonishing and shocking", noting that Shah's father was himself one of the complainants in the Watch IN THIS STORY#Mumbai
Time of India
3 days ago
- Time of India
Anchor Group director arrest illegal, holds HC
Mumbai: The Bombay High Court vacation bench on Friday declared the arrest of Anchor Group director Hemang Shah , 50, by Mumbai Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) as illegal, citing failure by police to produce him before a magistrate in 24 hours. The court ordered his immediate release from Arthur Road Jail. The vacation bench, comprising Justices Gauri Godse and Somasekhar Sundaresan, noted that chat messages between the wives of the two brothers supported Hemang Shah's claim that his arrest and continued custody were intended to recover the settlement amount in mediation between family members. The arrest was based on allegations of defrauding his elder brother, Mehul Shah, of Rs 67 crore. Hemang Shah petitioned the HC, arguing that his arrest was illegal since he was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours as required by law. He was detained at Delhi airport at 5.30 pm on May 17 and produced in court only at 10.45 pm on May 18. The HC agreed, stating that his arrest "without producing him before the nearest magistrate within 24 hours is completely illegal" and infringes on fundamental rights under Article 22(2), which mandates such production. The FIR by the elder brother was lodged with Malabar Hill police station in South Mumbai at 2.14 am, and a Look Out Circular (LOC) was issued at the police station's request. The dispute, being resolved before a mediator, is between Hemang on one side and his brother and their father on the other. The FIR was filed during mediation, and Hemang, scheduled to fly to Muscat from Delhi on May 17, was apprehended at the airport due to the LOC. Police stated they arrested him on May 18 after the immigration department handed him over at 4.30 am, and then he was brought to Mumbai. Senior counsel for the elder brother—the complainant—argued that the immigration officers cannot be considered police officers, and hence his custody after being "accosted" at the airport was not an "arrest" by police officers. The EOW's arrest memo states he was arrested on May 18 at 7.30 pm. The HC bench said, "In our view, the act of the Immigration Officers to accost the petitioner or detain him on 17th May 2025 at 1730 hours is the act of arrest, and therefore the period of 24 hours as contemplated under Section 58 of BNS and Article 22(2) of the Constitution of India shall begin on 17th May 2025 at 1730 hours." The High Court, however, clarified that its observations were only to decide his plea regarding his illegal arrest and would not influence the trial or merits of the case.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Bombay High Court holds businessman's arrest in Rs 67 cr case illegal, orders his release
Representative image MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court vacation bench on Friday declared the arrest of Anchor Group director Hemang Shah , 50, by Mumbai Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) as illegal, citing failure by police to produce him before a magistrate in 24 hours. The court ordered his immediate release from Arthur Road Jail. The vacation bench, comprising Justices Gauri Godse and Somasekhar Sundaresan, noted that chat messages between the wives of the two brothers supported Hemang Shah's claim that his arrest and continued custody were intended to recover the settlement amount in mediation between family members. The arrest was based on allegations of defrauding his elder brother, Mehul Shah, of Rs 67 crore. Hemang Shah petitioned the HC, arguing that his arrest was illegal since he was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours as required by law. He was detained at Delhi airport at 5.30 pm on May 17 and produced in court only at 10.45 pm on May 18. The HC agreed, stating that his arrest "without producing him before the nearest magistrate within 24 hours is completely illegal" and infringes on fundamental rights under Article 22(2), which mandates such production. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Trading CFD dengan Teknologi dan Kecepatan Lebih Baik IC Markets Mendaftar Undo The FIR by the elder brother was lodged with Malabar Hill police station in South Mumbai at 2.14 am, and a Look Out Circular (LOC) was issued at the police station's request. The dispute, being resolved before a mediator, is between Hemang on one side and his brother and their father on the other. The FIR was filed during mediation, and Hemang, scheduled to fly to Muscat from Delhi on May 17, was apprehended at the airport due to the LOC. Police stated they arrested him on May 18 after the immigration department handed him over at 4.30 am, and then he was brought to Mumbai. Senior counsel for the elder brother-the complainant-argued that the immigration officers cannot be considered police officers, and hence his custody after being "accosted" at the airport was not an "arrest" by cops. The EOW's arrest memo states he was arrested on May 18 at 7.30 pm. The HC bench said, "In our view, the act of the Immigration Officers to accost the petitioner or detain him on 17th May 2025 at 1730 hours is the act of arrest, and therefore the period of 24 hours as contemplated under Section 58 of BNS and Article 22(2) of the Constitution of India shall begin on 17th May 2025 at 1730 hours."
Time of India
4 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Bombay HC holds Hemang Shah arrest illegal for flouting procedure, orders immediate release
The Bombay High Court declared Hemang Shah's arrest by the Economic Offences Wing illegal due to the failure to produce him before a magistrate within 24 hours. MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court vacation bench on Friday declared the arrest of Anchor Group director Hemang Shah , 50, by Mumbai Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) as illegal, citing failure by police to produce him before a magistrate in 24 hours. The court ordered his immediate release from Arthur Road Jail. The vacation bench, comprising Justices Gauri Godse and Somasekhar Sundaresan, noted that chat messages between the wives of the two brothers supported Hemang Shah's claim that his arrest and continued custody were intended to recover the settlement amount in mediation between family members. The arrest was based on allegations of defrauding his elder brother, Mehul Shah, of Rs 67 crore. Hemang Shah petitioned the High Court, arguing that his arrest was illegal since he was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours as required by law. He was detained at Delhi airport at 5.30 pm on May 17 and produced in court only at 10.45 pm on May 18. The High Court agreed, stating that his arrest "without producing him before the nearest magistrate within 24 hours is completely illegal" and infringes on fundamental rights under Article 22(2), which mandates such production. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 5 Books Warren Buffett Wants You to Read In 2025 Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo The First Information Report (FIR) by the elder brother was lodged with Malabar Police Station in South Mumbai at 2.14 am, and a Look Out Circular (LOC) was issued at the police station's request. The dispute, being resolved before a mediator, is between Hemang on one side and his brother and their father on the other. The FIR was filed during mediation, and Hemang, scheduled to fly to Muscat from Delhi on May 17, was apprehended at the airport due to the LOC. Police stated they arrested him on May 18 after the immigration department handed him over at 4.30 am, and then he was brought to Mumbai. Senior counsel for the elder brother—the complainant—argued that the immigration officers cannot be considered police officers, and hence his custody after being "accosted" at the airport was not an "arrest" by police officers. The prosecution and complainant's counsel argued that only on arrest by officers authorised to do so would the legal obligations ensue. The EOW's arrest memo states he was arrested on May 18 at 7.30 pm. The High Court bench said, "In our view, the act of the Immigration Officers to accost the petitioner or detain him on 17th May 2025 at 1730 hours is the act of arrest, and therefore the period of 24 hours as contemplated under Section 58 of BNS and Article 22(2) of the Constitution of India shall begin on 17th May 2025 at 1730 hours." Additionally, the High Court order stated, "Though the petitioner is shown to have been arrested in the arrest memo on 18th May 2025 at 19.30 hours, the material on record does not support the date and time as mentioned in the arrest memo." The bench also refrained from "expressing any comments on the unholy haste shown by the police officers as well as EOW officers in registering the FIR post-midnight at 2.14 hours on 14th May 2025 and also issuing the request for LOC (Look Out Circular) on the same day," stating that the case did not merit such haste. "Considering the nature of the dispute and the allegations made against the petitioner, we did not find any such tearing hurry to initiate action to take the petitioner into custody with such zeal and enthusiasm," said the detailed order made available on Saturday. The High Court also accepted the prosecutor's statement that the police would preserve CCTV footage of the EOW Unit 5 office at DN Road and the May 18, 22, 25 entry register for two weeks to enable Hemang Shah to take legal steps. However, the High Court clarified that its observations were only to decide his plea regarding his illegal arrest and would not influence the trial or merits of the case.
