Mumbai Court Acquits 61-Year-Old Woman Booked For Duping Investors After Nearly 22 Years Of Trial

A special court in Mumbai recently acquitted a 61-year-old woman, accused of duping investors to the tune of Rs 1 crore, after a long trial of almost 22 years.

Special Judge Nikhil Mehta, presiding over the Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors (MPID), Act, acquitted Bhavana Thakkar of charges under the special enactment along with provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) which penalise criminal breach of trust (section 406), cheating (420) and abetment to commit an offence (114).

Thakkar was initially booked in April 5, 2001 along with her husband Ajay Thakkar. The couple was accused of convincing investors to deposit huge sums in their financial firm and even promised luring returns. The couple had started the firm in 1998 and since then had been receiving deposits.

Initially, it gave the promised returns to the depositors. However, in 2001, some investors lodged a complaint with the Malad police station in suburban Mumbai alleging fraud as the couple failed to pay the returns as promised.

During the course of trial, Ajay died and the trial against him stood abated. As regards Bhavana, the judge after going through the material on record, opined that the evidence fell short for her conviction.

"It could not be established that accused Bhavana was promoter, partner, director, manager responsible for the management of or conducting of the business or affairs of the financial establishment and in that capacity she accepted deposit promising higher returns and fraudulently made default in repayment of deposits on maturity with benefit. Further there is no material to show that she had promised any specified service against said deposit with an intention of causing wrongful gain for herself and to cause wrongful loss to depositors," the judge noted.

The court further held that the prosecution failed to prove that Thakkar accepted deposit with intention to cheat depositors and thereby she gained wrongfully by causing wrongful loss to them.

"There was no intention on her part to deceive depositors which get fortified from the statement of witnesses that she never approached them for deposit. Further she never promised them higher returns which suggest that she never made false and wrongful representation with intention to deceive investors," the court said in the May 13 order.

Further it could not be established that depositors entrusted any money with Thakkar to be utilised by her financial firm to gain profit to be used in repaying deposit with interest to investors, the court said, adding that the ingredients of the charges invoked against her, were not proved.

The court, therefore, acquitted her from the case.

Case Title: State of Maharashtra vs Ajay Amrutlal Thakkar

Appearance:

Advocates Ashok Mishra and Kinjal Mehta instructed by Solicis Lex appeared for the Accused.

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