2025:CGHC:56323 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR MCRC No. 9330 of 2025 Nikhil Chawala S/o Kishore Chawla Aged About 33 Years R/o A-204 Cross Road Apartment, Amladih Raipur, District Raipur (C.G.)

... Applicant versus State Of Chhattisgarh Through Station House Officer, Police Station Civil Line, District Raipur (C.G.)

---- Non-applicant RAJSHEKHAR For Applicant : Mr. Ali Afzaal Mirza, Advocate.

SONI For Non-applicant/State : Mr. Jitendra Shrivastava, Govt. Advocate.

Digitally signed by Hon'ble Shri Ramesh Sinha , Chief Justice RAJSHEKHAR SONI Order on Board

19.11.2025

1.

This is the First bail application filed under Section 483 of the Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 for grant of regular bail to the applicant arrested in connection with Crime No. 129/2025 registered at Police Station – Civil Line, Raipur, District – Raipur (C.G.) for the offence punishable under Sections 317(2), 317(4), 317(5), 111(3) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS).

2.

Case of the prosecution, in brief, is that on 27.10.2023 and 04.07.2024, letters were received from the Additional Superintendent of Police, Police Headquarters, Raipur, for initiating proceedings against the mule account holders. Thereafter, on 23.03.2025, the same was forwarded to the Samanvay Portal of the Home Ministry, Government of India, which is operated for reporting cyber-crimes in India, for the purpose of enquiring about the mule accounts used in the cyber-crime. Upon enquiry, it was found that 128 bank accounts of the Bank of Maharashtra, Branch Raipur, were involved in the said cyber-crime, and an amount of Rs. 64,10,855/- was deposited into these 128 accounts. Between 01.01.2024 and 11.01.2024, the said amount of Rs. 64,10,855/- was fraudulently deposited into the aforesaid accounts with mala fide intent and purpose. Upon such complaint and investigation, the police registered FIR No. 129/2025 on 23.03.2025 against the present applicant and co-accused. Hence, this application.

3.

Learned counsel appearing for the applicant submits that the applicant is innocent and has been falsely implicated in the present case. It is further submitted that the charge-sheet has been submitted in this case. It is further submitted that no incriminating material or proceeds of crime have been recovered from the applicant. The entire case is based on statements and assumptions without any direct material evidence against the applicant. The applicant is in jail since 16.10.2025, and the conclusion of the trial shall take quite long time. Therefore, he prays for grant of bail.

4.

On the other hand, learned State counsel opposes the bail application and submits that from the perusal of the case-diary it transpires that the material collected during investigation clearly demonstrates the applicant’s active and conscious involvement in a well-organized cyber-crime network operating through mule bank accounts. The case does not merely involve an isolated or inadvertent banking transaction, rather it reveals a deep-rooted criminal syndicate wherein fraudulent accounts were systematically opened, sold, and used to siphon off money cheated from innocent citizens across several states. The applicant knowingly opened the bank account in question, handed over the entire bank kit to co- accused persons for monetary inducement, and facilitated the transfer of Rs.61,11,340/- worth of suspicious transactions, including deposits confirmed through national cyber-crime records.

5.

Learned State counsel further submits that the applicant’s own memorandum statement proves that he willingly became a part of the chain of cyber criminals by giving access to his bank account for illegal use. The use of the applicant’s account in multiple cyber- fraud complaints filed on the Cyber Crime Reporting Portal/1930, the recovery of certified statements confirming fraudulent credits, and the consistent statements of co-accused persons establishing the financial flow of the criminal proceeds, all point towar