Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Thursday granted bail to Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd promoters Kapil Wadhawan and Dheeraj Wadhawan, who have been accused of money laundering by the Enforcement Directorate in the multi-crore Yes Bank fraud case.
Justice Bharati Dangre granted bail to Wadhwan brothers as Enforcement Directorate (ED) failed to file its chargesheet against them in the case within the stipulated 60-day period.
The court noted that there is a period prescribed in law for filing of the charge sheet, and an accused cannot be kept in custody even for a day after the stipulated time and they have the right to default bail.
An accused can seek default bail if the investigating agency fails to file a charge sheet against him or her in the case within the period prescribed under section 167 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
The court directed the duo to deposit Rs 1 lakh each as surety and surrender their passports.
The brothers, however, will remain in jail as they have also been arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the same case.
They had sought bail claiming the ED failed to file its charge sheet within the stipulated period of 60 days.
The brothers were arrested by the ED on May 14 on money laundering charges.
The ED filed its chargesheet on July 15 against the Wadhawans, Yes Bank founder Rana Kapoor, his wife Bindu Kapoor, daughters Roshni and Rekha, and their chartered accountant firm Dularesh K Jain and Associate.
The Enforcement Directorate had initiated proceedings in the case after the CBI registered a complaint on March 7, 2020 in connection with alleged suspicious loans granted by Yes Bank and the alleged ''quid pro quo'' between Rana Kapoor and the Wadhawans.