Bombay High Court
Abhay Narendra Lodha vs Union Of India on 13 April, 2023
Bench: G.S. Patel, Dr. Neela Gokhale
2023:BHC-OS:2944-DB 918-IAL-9080-2023-IN-WPL-9076-2023-LOC-IMM.DOC
Shephali
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
ORDINARY ORIGINAL CIVIL JURISDICTION
INTERIM APPLICATION (L) NO. 9080 OF 2023
IN
WRIT PETITION (L) NO. 9076 OF 2023
Abhay Narendra Lodha ...Applicant
In the matter between
Abhay Narendra Lodha ...Petitioner
Versus
Union of India & Ors ...Respondents
Dr Abhinav Chandrachud, i/b Bhavesh Thakur, for the
Applicant/Petitioner.
Mr Harsh Dedhia, i/b Hiten Venegavkar, for the Respondent-CBI.
CORAM G.S. Patel &
Neela Gokhale, JJ.
DATED: 13th April 2023
PC:-
SHEPHALI
SANJAY 1. The Interim Application is by the Writ Petitioner seeking
MORMARE
Digitally signed by
SHEPHALI SANJAY
MORMARE
temporary leave to travel overseas to the United States of America
Date: 2023.04.17
09:52:11 +0530
and London from 20th April 2023 to 16th May 2023 and, for the
duration of the travel, to suspend the Look Out Circular or LOC
issued against him through the Bureau of Immigration, the 2nd
Respondent. The proposed travel is for work purposes and copies of
the letters at pages 19 and 21 set out reasons.
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2. The peculiarity of this case is that the issuing agency, the one
at whose instance the LOC is issued or the one's who have caused
the LOCs to be issued are not joined as Respondents to the Petition.
This requires us to consider a part of the factual background. We are
told that the Respondents have been given notice. In 2022, a
Division Bench of which one of us (GS Patel J) was a member, heard
a large group of Petitions challenging not only individual LOCs but
Office Memoranda ("OM") issued by the Union Government
through the Bureau of Immigration under which such LOCs are
issued. The challenge in that group was to amendments to the OMs
permitting public sector banks to cause the LOCs to be issued. The
judgment is reserved having extensively heard both sides at length.
This Petition was not part of that group. It has been subsequently
filed.
3. The challenge in the Writ Petition is to the issuance of the
LOCs and the Petitioner say that he learnt one of LOCs for the first
time from order of 19th April 2021 passed by the Chief Passport
Officer, New Delhi in an Appeal filed by the petitioner challenging
an order impounding or revoking his passport No. Z3268050. A
copy of that appellate order dated 19th April 2021 is from pages 28
to 32. The Petitioner challenged that appellate order in Writ Petition
(C) No. 4370 of 2022. An order came to be passed on 25th May
2022. That order allowed the Petitioner to apply for a fresh passport
in terms of the observations in the appellate order of 19th April
2021. Thereafter the Chief Passport Officer issued a passport to the
Petitioner. The Petitioner received this on 21st December 2022.
The fresh passport number is Z7122158.
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4. The Petitioner admits that he is associated with number of
companies as a director, executive and non-executive, and also
guaranteed repayment of financial facilities availed to those
companies. The principal business was iron and steel
manufacturing. The Petitioner claims that due to a global recession
or downturn, there were problems in repayment and this led to the
banks adopting legal measures through various proceedings before
the Debt Recovery Tribunal, under the Securitisation and
Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Securities
Interest Act 2002 ("SARFAESI"), in the Insolvency Court and so
on. Sub- paragraph 1(c) of the Petition mentions several cases in the
Sessions Court, Magistrates Courts etc, but says that the Petitioner
has never been arrested, and whenever summoned has appeared
before the Court. He has, when necessary, received bail. Sub-
paragraph (d) says that he has also filed Writ Petition No. 26 of 2020
for quashing a particular FIR. The Division Bench of this Court
stayed the framing of charges. There is another FIR where
investigation is going on and the Petitioner is cooperating with the
investigation.
5. Moe importantly, the Petitioner states in paragraphs 4 and 5
that he was never heard before the issuance of the LOC and was not
served with a copy of the LOC in question. In paragraph 6 the
Petitioner sets out the purpose of the business travel that he
proposes to undertake.
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6. The Interim Application seeks a temporary right and indicates
the Petitioner's rights under the Constitution as declared inter alia
by Maneka Gandhi v Union of India.1
7. We find at page 36 of the Petition a list of eight FIRs and
complaints that have been filed with the case numbers and status.
The issuing banks include, UCO Bank, State Bank of India, Union
Bank of India, Bank of Baroda and IDBI Bank. In five of the cases
the Petitioner has bail. In one case mentioned above, there is a
quashing Petition before the High Court with a stay on framing of
charges. The last two cases are under investigation and the
Petitioner is cooperating.
8. We permit the Petitioner to amend the Petition to join all
these banks as party Respondents. Amendments are to be carried
out by 19th April 2023 without need of reverification. The banks are
to be served with copies of the amended Petitions.
9. Purely as a temporary measure and in view of the business
purposes mentioned, and having regard to the statement on law in
Maneka Gandhi's case but without any assessment of the claims of
the issuing banks, we grant the Petitioner a limited permission to
travel between 20th April 2023 to 16th May 2023 to the USA and to
London subject to the usual conditions, viz.:-
(a) the Petitioner is to file an undertaking to return to this
country at the end of this period, if not already done;
1 1978 (1) SCC 248.
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(b) the Petitioner is to file a detailed itinerary with his
contact details and addresses overseas, if not already
done;
(c) The Petitioner must file an undertaking (if not already
done) not to apply for renewal or extension of this
order until he returns to this country.
10. Subject to these conditions, the LOCs in question against the
Petitioner are stayed until 17th May 2023 and not beyond that.
11. The Petitioner is also entitled to travel via any transit hub or
the destination.
12. The immigration authorities at all ports of departure
including all airports will permit the Petitioner passage and permit
the Petitioner to take his flights out of the country irrespective of
whether they have notified them or not and irrespective of whether
this suspension is noted in the immigration authorities' systems or
not.
13. The immigration authorities will not ask for a certified copy of
this order but will act on presentation of an authenticated or digitally
signed copy of this order. The Interim Application is disposed of in
these terms. No costs.
(Neela Gokhale, J) (G. S. Patel, J)
13th April 2023
