Sashidhar Jagdishan.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu
The Bombay High Court on Monday (July 14, 2025) adjourned till July 23, 2025, the hearing on a petition filed by HDFC Bank Managing Director and CEO Sashidhar Jagdishan seeking quashing of a First Information Report (FIR) lodged against him by a trustee of the Lilavati Kirtilal Mehta Medical Trust. The FIR accuses Mr. Jagdishan of accepting ₹2.05 crore in cash to aid alleged financial wrongdoing by one faction of the Mehta family.
A Division Bench of judges, Justice M.S. Karnik and Justice N.R. Borkar heard preliminary arguments from Senior Advocate Amit Desai, appearing for the HDFC Bank CEO, who contended that the complaint was “false, outrageous and preposterous” and part of a larger pattern of “malafide legal harassment” by Prashant Mehta, a trustee of the hospital trust.
Earlier, four judges had recused from hearing the matter.
Mr. Desai informed the court that the FIR is a retaliatory move following the bank’s recovery efforts against Splendour Gems (formerly Beautiful Diamonds), a company promoted by members of the Mehta family, which defaulted on loans amounting to ₹65.22 crore. A recovery certificate had been issued by the Debt Recovery Tribunal as early as 2004.
He further explained that there are two factions within the Mehta family, and that after a change in control in January 2024, multiple legal proceedings were initiated by Prashant Mehta, including an earlier application under Section 156(3) CrPC alleging culpable homicide—an application that was dismissed and is now under revision. The present FIR, registered on the direction of the Bandra Magistrate under Section 175 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, followed a complaint submitted in September 2024 alleging discovery of a “cash diary” indicating payments to Mr. Jagdishan.
“This is not about law—it is legal warfare. They have lost at every stage, and now they are misusing the criminal process to exert pressure on an individual,” Mr. Desai submitted. He added that a press campaign and letters to the RBI and the Bank Chairman began soon after the FIR was registered on May 31, calling for Mr. Jagdishan’s removal.
The court inquired whether any coercive action was anticipated, to which Mr. Desai responded in the affirmative. The Additional Public Prosecutor (APP), however, said the investigation was ongoing and now under the purview of the Economic Offences Wing (EOW). The APP requested that the matter be taken up next week, citing the emergence of fresh communication between members of the trust and former trustees.
The court noted that no summons had been issued thus far and orally directed that no such action be taken until Friday. It also asked for a consolidated chart of other petitions connected to the dispute—including those filed by the Asset Reconstruction Company and a plea for transferring the investigation to the CBI.
The matter will now be taken up on July 23.
Published – July 15, 2025 07:50 am IST
