A Mumbai special court denied bail to Sandeep Mistry in the Punjab National Bank scam case. The ruling cited risks of evidence destruction, witness tampering and his absence during trial.
A Mumbai court on Thursday denied bail to Nirav Modi's aide Sandeep Mistry. (File photo)
Mumbai,Oct 15, 2026 22:51 IST
A special court in Mumbai on Thursday denied bail to Sandeep Mistry, an associate of fugitive businessman Nirav Modi, in the Punjab National Bank scam case, news agency PTI reported. The court said Mistry had a history of destroying evidence and could do so again if released.
The court also noted that Mistry had been absconding for about seven years and said it could be difficult to ensure his presence during the trial if he was granted bail.
Special CBI court judge Subhash Karhale said Mistry was detained in Dubai following a non-bailable warrant and extradition proceedings. He was later brought to India and arrested at Mumbai airport.
"Thus, the appearance of the applicant in this case is under compelling circumstances. Under these circumstances, if he is released on bail, it would be difficult to secure his presence during the course of trial," the court said.
Mistry had served as a director of Fancy Creations Ltd, a Hong Kong-based company linked to Nirav Modi.
The Central Bureau of Investigation, represented by special public prosecutor A Limosin, told the court that Mistry managed and coordinated the operations of Modi's dummy companies in Dubai and Hong Kong, according to PTI.
The agency alleged that Mistry supervised the companies' daily operations through secret communication systems called "panemail" and "crickinfo". These systems were designed to automatically delete messages and conceal evidence.
The CBI alleged that Mistry played an active role in a criminal conspiracy with Nirav Modi and other accused, through which Punjab National Bank was cheated.
The agency also claimed that Mistry, Nirav Modi's brother Nehal and another wanted accused threatened employees who were dummy directors of various firms associated with Modi in Dubai after the case was registered in India. The employees were allegedly forced to move to Cairo after being told that they could also be arrested.
Mistry sought bail on the ground that other co-accused had been granted relief and the main chargesheet was filed in 2019. His lawyer also argued that he had been unable to return to India earlier because his passport had been revoked.
The court said Mistry and the other accused had allegedly committed a fraud of more than Rs 23,780 crore. The judge also underlined Mistry's alleged history of destroying evidence.
"If he is released on bail, he may destroy the evidence. He may tamper with the prosecution witnesses," the court said.
"Financial implications of thousands of crores of rupees and the nature of the above referred offences are also sufficient reasons to refuse the bail," it ruled.
Nirav Modi, his uncle Mehul Choksi and others have been under investigation by the Enforcement Directorate on money-laundering charges since 2018. They are also being investigated by the CBI.
They are accused of carrying out the fraud with the help of bank officials by issuing fraudulent Letters of Undertaking at PNB's Brady House branch in Mumbai. The court denied Mistry bail over concerns that he could destroy evidence, influence witnesses or fail to appear during the trial.
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