The Delhi High Court has dismissed Bollywood actor Rajpal Yadav’s plea seeking extension of time to surrender in connection with his conviction in multiple cheque bounce cases, observing that he repeatedly breached court undertakings and showed no sincerity in complying with orders.
The Delhi High Court on Wednesday refused to grant any further extension to Bollywood actor Rajpal Yadav to surrender before jail authorities in connection with his conviction in multiple cheque bounce cases.
Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, who had earlier directed Yadav to surrender by 4 p.m. on February 7, firmly rejected the actor’s last-minute application seeking an additional week to deposit ₹50 lakh, citing his repeated failure to honour court undertakings.
“I rejected these submissions on that day itself and granted you two more days to surrender. I don’t think there is any ground. You were to surrender on a particular day but you were granted two days because you said you were in Bombay. Today you have to surrender at 4 o’clock,” the court observed.
Yadav’s counsel made a “mercy plea” for at least one more day to enable the actor to arrange the amount, claiming ₹50 lakh had already been collected. However, the court declined the request, noting:
“This he has done at least 15-20 times in the past… His conduct has been mentioned in the last order. He has not complied with any order, any undertaking… I don’t think there is any ground for him for any leniency any more.”
In its February 2 order, the High Court had directed Rajpal Yadav to surrender before the concerned jail superintendent by 4 p.m. on February 7, while severely criticising his conduct.
The court noted that the actor had repeatedly breached his undertakings to repay the amount owed to the complainant, M/s Murali Projects Pvt Ltd. He was required to pay ₹1.35 crore in each of the seven cheque bounce cases against him.
The court further directed that the amount already deposited with the Registrar General of the High Court — including two demand drafts worth ₹75 lakh submitted in October 2025 — be released in favour of the complainant. However, it was noted that a substantial amount of ₹9 crore still remained unpaid.
The actor and his wife had filed revision petitions against the 2019 decision of a sessions court that upheld their conviction by a magisterial court in April 2018 under the Negotiable Instruments Act.
While sentencing him to six months’ imprisonment, the magisterial court had held that Yadav was liable to repay the defaulted cheques. His counsel had argued that the transaction was a genuine one undertaken to finance a movie, which failed commercially, resulting in financial distress.
In June 2024, the High Court had temporarily suspended his conviction, subject to the condition that he would adopt “sincere and genuine measures” to settle the matter amicably with the complainant.
However, the latest refusal by the court to extend his surrender deadline comes after multiple missed payments and what the court termed as a repeated lack of seriousness in following through on commitments made under oath.
With the rejection of his application, Yadav is now required to comply with the court’s earlier order and surrender without delay.
