The Supreme Court on Thursday sought the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) response to real estate firm M3M director Roop Bansal’s plea seeking to withdraw his petition before the Punjab and Haryana High Court that sought quashing of a bribery case against him.
A bench of Justices M.M. Sundresh and Satish Chandra Sharma was hearing Bansal’s challenge to the August 27 order of the high court, which had refused to permit unconditional withdrawal of his petition without hearing the ED. The high court had directed the ED to file a reply and listed the matter for October 13.
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for Bansal, argued that his client was not seeking any liberty and wished to withdraw the petition unconditionally. “Why should the high court oppose and seek ED’s reply to my withdrawal application?” he asked.
The bench, however, observed, “If somebody wants to withdraw, they won’t be in a hurry unless they have reason to believe that the ED will file an affidavit that has something against you.” The court agreed to hear the matter in October, though Singhvi pressed for an earlier date before the next scheduled high court hearing.
The ED had opposed Bansal’s withdrawal before the high court, pointing to his repeated filing and withdrawal of petitions, which it alleged amounted to “bench hunting” and forum shopping. Bench hunting is considered an unethical practice of attempting to secure a particular judge or bench perceived to be favourable.
In May, Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice Sheel Nagu had orally remarked on possible bench hunting before recusing himself from the matter. The case is now being heard by Justice Manjari Nehru Kaul. The Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana, on August 4, also set up a committee to examine allegations of bench hunting and issued notices to 16 lawyers, including senior advocates connected with the case.
Bansal is accused of attempting to bribe former special judge Sudhir Parmar through indirect channels. The Haryana Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) registered a case against Bansal and Parmar in April 2023 following ED findings.
The ED, which had arrested Bansal in June 2022 on money laundering charges, alleged that Parmar’s nephew and family members received ₹1.3 crore between October 2022 and March 2023, when charges were to be framed against Bansal. Parmar was subsequently suspended in April 2023.
The matter will now return to the Supreme Court in October, even as the high court proceedings continue in parallel.
