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2026:CGHC:5072

NAFR

HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR

MCRC No. 960 of 2026

Virendra Pratap Purseth S/o Manorath Prasad Purseth Aged About 34

Years R/o Nawapara Gharghoda, Police Station And Tahsil- Gharghoda,

District- Raigarh C.G.

... Applicant

versus

State of Chhattisgarh Through Station House OfÏcer, Police Station-

Gharghoda, District- Raigarh C.G.

... Non-applicant

For Applicant : Mr. Chandrikaditya Pandey, Advocate

For Non-applicant/State : Ms. Vaishali Mahilong, Dy. Govt. Advocate

Hon'ble Shri Ramesh Sinha , Chief Justice

Order on Board

29.01.2026

1. This is the First bail application filed under Section 483 of the

Bhartiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 for grant of regular bail to

the applicant who has been arrested in connection with Crime No.

297/2025 registered at Police Station : Gharghoda, District-

Raigarh, (C.G.) for the offence punishable under Sections 419, 420,

467, 468, 470, 471 and 120(B) of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.

2. The prosecution story in brief is that on 09.11.2025 at about 12:04

RAHUL a.m., the complainant, Rakesh Tiwari, Manager of Shriram Finance

DEWANGAN

Digitally

signed by

RAHUL

DEWANGAN

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Corporation Pvt. Ltd., Gharghoda Branch, lodged a report at Police

Outpost Gharghoda alleging that during the period from 12.09.2017

to 15.03.2019, the applicant Virendra Pratap Purseth, along with

co-accused persons Khemraj Gupta and Sudhir Nishad, who were

posted as Sales Manager and thereafter as Branch Manager at the

Gharghoda branch, in connivance with certain brokers and

customers, fraudulently procured business loans in the names of

about 26 customers by falsely showing the business establishments

of other persons as those of the borrowers and getting the same

verified through brokers, thereby misappropriating a total loan

amount of approximately Rs. 1,30,50,000/- belonging to the

company. It is alleged that despite prior caution and instructions to

regularize the loan accounts, the accused persons failed to do so,

resulting in huge outstanding dues, whereupon an internal inquiry

was conducted pursuant to authorization dated 15.01.2025, which

revealed the alleged criminal conspiracy and forgery of loan

documents for illegal gain. On the basis of the said report, FIR

bearing Crime No. 297/2025 was registered at Police Station

Gharghoda for offences under Sections 419, 420, 467, 468, 470,

471 and 120-B of the Indian Penal Code, and the matter is

presently under investigation. Hence, this bail application.

3. Learned counsel for the applicant submits that the applicant has

been falsely implicated in the present case and is innocent, having

committed no offence whatsoever. It is contended that the applicant

was appointed in Shriram Finance, Gharghoda Branch in

December 2016, was transferred in April 2018, and was not posted

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at the said branch during a substantial part of the alleged period,

and thus his involvement in the alleged transactions is highly

doubtful. It is further submitted that the dispute is purely civil in

nature relating to recovery of loan amounts, for which the company

itself has already initiated proceedings under Section 138 of the

Negotiable Instruments Act against the borrowers, and no amount

has ever been credited to the applicant’s account. The FIR has

been lodged after an inordinate and unexplained delay of more than

six years, without any prior inquiry, and the allegations against the

applicant are general and omnibus, resting mainly on documentary

evidence already in possession of the investigating agency. No

incriminating amount or material has been recovered from the

applicant, custodial interrogation is not required. He further submits

that similarly situated co-accused person, namely, Rajkumar Sahu

has already been granted bail by this Court vide order dated

28.01.2026 in MCRC No. 9787/2025. He also submits that the

applicant has no criminal antecedents, and he applicant is in jail

since 10.11.2025 while the charge-sheet is yet to be filed, and the

trial is likely to take some time for its conclusion. There