Sanjay Singhal Vs State of Haryana (Punjab and Haryana High Court)
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has granted regular bail to Sanjay Singhal, an accused in a case involving alleged misuse of a PAN card and fraudulent GST transactions totaling approximately ₹7 crore. The case, filed under FIR No. 61 of 2023, includes charges under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471, and 201 of the Indian Penal Code, along with Section 132 of the GST Act.
The complaint was initiated by Virendra Kumar, who discovered through an Income Tax notice that an unknown party had opened a firm named SBJ Enterprises using his PAN card. This firm was found to have conducted transactions worth around ₹7 crore in the 2020-2021 financial year. Singhal was arrested in connection with the case on November 13, 2024.
Singhal’s counsel argued that the petitioner has been in custody for over eight months and has no specific role attributed to him in the alleged fraud. The counsel also highlighted that Singhal is 48 years old and has no prior criminal record. The state prosecutor opposed the bail application, citing the serious nature of the allegations.
The High Court noted that the investigation is complete, and the chargesheet was filed on December 23, 2024. However, with 71 prosecution witnesses cited and only two examined so far, the court acknowledged that the trial’s conclusion would take a considerable amount of time. The court determined that at this stage, it was not appropriate to delve into the merits of the case, as this could prejudice the trial.
