Mpost Bureau
New Delhi: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Thursday opposed before a Delhi court Pearls Group CMD Nirmal Singh Bhangoo's plea, seeking to stay proceedings in a case in which his firm has allegedly collected over Rs 49,100 crore from investors in the name of investment schemes violating the law, saying it was deliberate ploy to delay the matter.
SEBI sought dismissal with exemplary cost Bhangoo's application and said the basic facts constituting the offence alleged by the regulator were altogether different from those mentioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in its FIR.
"The application of accused number 6 (Bhangoo) filed under Section 210 of the CrPC is devoid of any merit. It is submitted that it is a deliberate ploy to confuse the issue and delay the proceedings in this case...complaint in respect of offences punishable under SEBI Act can be made by SEBI only. Thus, any investigation being carried out by the CBI in respect of the said FIR will not be in respect of the offence alleged in the complaint of SEBI. No purpose will be served by staying proceedings in the above titled matter or by calling of report from CBI," the reply filed by SEBI's counsel Sanjay Mann said.
Bhangoo, in his plea filed through advocates Manish Jain and Vijay Aggarwal, has sought stay of proceedings in the case filed by SEBI, claiming the regulator's complaint was based on the same allegations as that of the CBI's FIR and he cannot be tried twice for the same alleged offence.
Additional Sessions Judge Arvind Kumar has reserved its order on the plea for February 24.
The court had earlier taken cognizance of SEBI's complaint and summoned as accused Pearl Agrotech Corporation Ltd (PACL), its promoters and directors, Nirmal Singh Bhangoo, Tarlochan Singh, Sukhdev Singh, Gurmeet Singh, Subrata Bhattacharya, Joginder Tyger, Gurnam Singh, Anand Gurwant Singh and Devinder Kumar Uppal.