Absconding Sterling Biotech promoters move court against NBWs, asked to give add in 15 days

Absconding Sterling Biotech Ltd (SBL) promoters -- Nitin Jayantilal Sandesara, Chetankumar Jayantilal Sandesara and Dipti Chetan Sandesara -- moved a Delhi court Thursday seeking cancellation of Non-Bailable Warrants (NBWs) issued against them in the Rs 8,100 crore bank fraud case.

They moved the application through their counsel before Additional Sessions Judge Satish Kumar Arora, who directed them to furnish their address to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) within 15 days and listed the matter for April 2.

The promoters have also sought permission to be represented in the court through their counsel.

The ED opposed their plea, saying extradition proceedings from Italy and Nigeria are being carried out against the Sandesaras as they have been absconding since the investigation and an open ended NBW was obtained from the court for this purpose.

The court had on January 21 allowed the agency to go ahead with the extradition process initiated against four SBL promoters including Hiteshkumar Narendrabhai Patel.

Another SBL promoter Hemant Hathi, who was earlier chargesheeted by the ED, appeared in the court in pursuance to the summons and moved a bail application. There was no NBW against Hemant.

The court granted him bail on furnishing of a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh and a surety of the like amount.

Hathi is one of the accused in the case along with other promoters -- Sandesaras, Patel, Rajbhushan Dixit and middleman Gagan Dhawan.

So far, the agency has chargesheeted over 190 accused, including seven individuals and over 180 companies.

The court had on January 5 issued open-ended NBWs against the four accused.

An "open-ended NBW" does not carry a time limit for execution unlike non-bailable warrants.

The agency had on December 24 last year informed the court that it wanted to approach Interpol for issuance of Red Corner Notice (RCN) against the SBL's directors and the Interpol guidelines for opening RCN against the four accused persons required open-ended NBWs from the court.

The ED has registered the alleged bank fraud case against the firm SBL under sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The accused are also being probed by the ED for allegedly bribing senior income tax department officials as part of an earlier criminal complaint.

The agency has also attached a number of properties belonging to the accused and a charge sheet was filed against them and others.