CBI court rejects bail pleas of Diamond Power owners

A special CBI court here today refused bail to Suresh Bhatnagar and his son Sumit, owners of Vadodara-based Diamond Power Infrastructure (DPIL), which is accused of cheating a consortium of banks of Rs 2,654 crore.

Special CBI judge N G Dave rejected their bail applications and adjourned to May 10 further hearing on the bail plea of Suresh Bhatnagar's another son, Amit Bhatnagar, who is also an accused.

The accused were influential people who defrauded banks by fudging documents, the CBI told the court, adding that the investigation was at a crucial stage and their release could affect it.

Advocate S V Raju, the accused's lawyer, argued that the offence of forgery was not made out against them.

Suresh Bhatnagar was suffering from several ailments, the lawyer added, while seeking bail for him.

As for Sumit Bhatnagar, the CBI had not established his direct role in the alleged crime, he said.

The DPIL manufactures electric cables and other electrical equipment.

According to the CBI, the DPIL fraudulently availed of credit facilities from a consortium of 11 banks (both public and private) since 2008, leading to an outstanding debt of Rs 2,654.40 crore as of June 29, 2016. It was declared a non-performing asset in 2016-17.