New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday dismissed a plea filed by alleged middleman in the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam, Christian Michel James, challenging a trial court order that had rejected his application for release from prison on the ground of having undergone the maximum sentence of seven years.
A Division Bench of Justices Navin Chawla and Ravinder Dudeja upheld the trial court’s decision, observing that there was no merit in the petition.
“We find no merit in the petition. The same is accordingly dismissed,” the Justice Chawla-led Bench said.
Michel, a British national, had approached the Delhi High Court assailing the order of a court below which refused to release him despite his claim that he had already undergone the maximum punishment of seven years for the offences for which he was extradited.
Earlier, Special Judge (PC Act) Sanjay Jindal had rejected Michel’s plea, observing that he could not be released as he continues to face charges under Section 467 of the Indian Penal Code — a serious offence punishable with life imprisonment.
Referring to orders passed earlier by the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court, the Special CBI Judge emphasised that most of the issues raised by the accused had already been adjudicated in the past, stating, “Judicial propriety does not allow to reconsider the issues again and again when the superior courts have already given observations on the same.”
The trial court had relied on the observation of the Supreme Court in an order passed in February 2023, where the apex court had categorically held that Section 436A CrPC would not apply due to the presence of the Section 467 IPC charge.
Under Section 436A of the CrPC, an undertrial prisoner who has spent half of the maximum period of imprisonment prescribed for the alleged offence shall be released on bail, except in cases where the offence is punishable with death.
Michel, an accused in the Rs 3,600-crore alleged scam relating to the purchase of 12 VVIP helicopters from AgustaWestland, faces multiple charges of corruption, criminal conspiracy, and money laundering.
He was extradited to India on December 5, 2018, from the UAE. On his arrival in India, he was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Days later, he was also arrested by the financial probe agency, the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Since then, he has been lodged in judicial custody at Tihar Jail.
(IANS)
