New Delhi, Mar 17 A Delhi court has dismissed the bail plea of Exclusive Capital Limited (ECL) director Kallarachal Abraham Johnson in a case related to the alleged cheating of Kolkata-based investors.
Chief Judicial Magistrate Niharika Kumar Sharma rejected the bail application, observing that Johnson's past attempts at evading arrest show his presence at the trial cannot be ensured without custody.
"Considering the nature of allegations, the stage of investigation and the conduct of the accused, this Court is not inclined to grant bail to the applicant at this stage," said the court in its order dated March 13.
Johnson, director of non-banking financial company ECL, had been absconding for over a month and was arrested on February 13 in Kerala for alleged diversion and siphoning of investor funds from ECL amounting to nearly Rs 315 crore.
The counsel for the accused argued that the complainants had never acquired any property and the investment instruments, namely, the Compulsorily Convertible Preference Shares (CCPS) had been cancelled by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).
However, the court dismissed this argument as the FIR largely deals with allegations of invested funds being siphoned off for personal use, and requires further investigation.
The court also rejected the argument that the complainant is "giving a criminal colour to a civil dispute", as several proceedings related to financial irregularities cited in this case are already pending before other forums.
"Mere pendency of civil or regulatory proceedings does not bar initiation or continuation of criminal proceedings if the allegations disclose commission of a cognisable offence," said the court.
It said that the allegations of misuse of position and siphoning of company funds for personal use "cannot be treated as purely civil in nature".
The court also dismissed the argument that the dispute is simply civil in nature as it said, "Although the transactions arise out of a commercial setup, the allegations go beyond a simple civil dispute… Civil and criminal proceedings can proceed simultaneously."
The court also disapproved of Johnson's attempts at evading investigation, as he was absconding for over a month and did not join the investigation until he was arrested after the execution of non-bailable warrants.
"One of the purposes of custody is to secure the presence of the accused during investigation and trial. Considering the conduct of the accused in evading investigation, this Court is of the view that his presence cannot be ensured without custody at this stage," the judge said.
Earlier on February 21, a sessions court denied bail to ECL director and co-accused Satya Prakash Bagla.
The case was based on a complaint filed by a Kolkata-based senior citizen couple, Suresh Kumar Agarwala and Kanta Agarwala, in October 2025 against the directors of ECL, including Abraham, Bagla and Achal Kumar Jindal.
An FIR was filed against them under Sections 420 (cheating), 409 (criminal breach of trust and 125B (criminal conspiracy) of the erstwhile Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The couple had accused the directors of misleading them into investing in Exclusive Capital. They later found themselves in the middle of a multi-crore fraud as the three directors siphoned off the investments to purchase luxury cars, electronic goods and lend sham loans to their connected entities.
