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* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI

Reserved on: 22^nd September, 2025 Pronounced on: 19^th December, 2025

+ CRL.M.C. 4362/2023 & CRL.M.A. 16540/2023, 16542/2023,

6462/2025

SACHIN DEV DUGGAL .....Petitioner

Through: Mr. Mohit Mathur, Senior Advocate

with Mr. Arshdeep Singh Khurana, Ms. Sulakshan S. Vedartham, Ms. Khushboo Jain, Mr. Chetan Nagpal

Advocates.

versus

DIRECTORATE OF ENFORCEMENT .....Respondent

Through: Mr. Zoheb Hossain, Special Counsel

with Mr. Vivek Gurnani, Panel Counsel, Mr. Kartik Sabharwal, Mr. Pranjal Tripathi and Mr. Daanish Abbasi, Mr. Mahesh Gupta, Mr. Navin Kumar and Mr. Ashish Kapoor,

Advocates. CORAM:

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE AMIT SHARMA

JUDGMENT

AMIT SHARMA, J.

1. The present petition under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal

Procedure, 1973 (for short, ‘CrPC’) seeks the following prayers: -

“A) That this Hon’ble Court may be pleased to set aside the order dated 09.06.2023 in Misc DJ ASJ 98/2023 thereby quashing non- bailable warrants as issued against the Petitioner vide order dated 10.02.2023 Misc DJ ASJ 35/2023 as being bad in law and all the proceedings emanating therefrom, And/or B) Pass such other or further order(s) as this Hon’ble Court may deem fit and proper in the facts and circumstances of the present case.”

2. The petitioner, who is a citizen of England, United Kingdom, has preferred the present petition challenging the impugned order dated 09.06.2023 whereby, the learned Special Judge, (PC Act), (CBI)-16, Rouse Avenue District Courts, declined to cancel the non-bailable warrants issued against the petitioner vide order dated 10.02.2023.

BACKGROUND

3. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), New Delhi registered an FIR No. RC2172020A0002 on 23.06.2020 under Sections 120B and 420 of Indian Penal Code, 1860 (for short, ‘IPC’), and under Section 13(2) read with Section 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (for short, ‘PC Act’) against Shri Venugopal Dhoot and one unknown officer of the Consortium of Banks led by the State Bank of India.

4. As the offences alleged in the aforesaid FIR were scheduled offences, the respondent/Directorate of Enforcement (for short, ‘ED’) registered an ECIR bearing No. ECIR/HQ/08/2020 on 30.06.2020. The case of the respondent/ED is as under: -

4.1. During investigation, it was revealed that M/s Videocon Industries Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as, ‘VIL’) had raised foreign currency loan for the appraisal and development of Oil and Gas assets (Mozambique, Brazil Indonesia, Australia, and East Timor), through its overseas company Jupitor Corporation from July 2009 against Standby Letter of Credit (‘SBLC facilities’) issued by the Indian lender banks.

4.2. During investigation, it was subsequently revealed that in 2008, M/s Videocon Hydro Carbon Holdings Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as, ‘VHHL’), a wholly owned step-down subsidiary of M/s Videocon Industries Ltd. (‘VIL’) required 10% participating interest in oil and gas assets in Rovuma area, 1 Block, Mozambique, from M/s Anadarko, which is a US petroleum company. Shri Venugopal Dhoot, was the Chairman and Managing Director of VIL and VHHL. Further, VHHL was registered at Cayman Islands and was dealing with the oil and gas business and having oil and gas assets in Mozambique, Indonesia, and Brazil.

4.3. Thereafter, it is alleged that VHHL also raised USD 400 million facilities from the Standard Charted Bank, London for appraisal and development of oil and assets of the Videocon Group. In 2012, it is alleged that the VIL refinanced the abovesaid credit facilities under the consortium structure having various lender banks led by the State Bank of India. State Bank of India led consortium bank had sanctioned the SBLC facilities amounting to USD 2774 million approximately to VHHL between 2012-13.

4.4. The investigation revealed that V.N. Dhoot and P.N. Dhoot, authorized signatories of overseas oil and gas asset holding companies Videocon Group Companies, with a dishonest intention to cheat the lender banks had diverted the for