SC reserves order on Neeraj Singal's interim bail (Lead)

New Delhi : The Supreme Court on Thursday reserved its order on a plea challenging the grant of interim bail to Bhushan Steel's erstwhile promoter Neeraj Singal by the Delhi High Court.

A bench of Justice A.M. Khanwilkar and Justice D.Y. Chandrachud reserved the order on the Serious Frauds Investigation Office's (SFIO) plea challenging the grant of the bail.

The Centre too had moved the court challenging the High Court order.

Singal is out of jail after the bail was granted on his habeas corpus petition. He contended that his arrest was illegal as the complaint was made under one law and his arrest was made under another.

The apex court reserved its order after Singal's lawyers opposed the suggestion from Additional Solicitor General Maninder Singh that the court may not interfere with the grant of the interim bail but stay the operation of the judgment which said that the investigating officer of SFIO would not compel Neeraj Singal to sing any statement.

ASG Maninder Singh said that this amounted to incapacitating the provision of law and wondered if such a thing could have been done.

Section 217 of the Companies Act lays down the procedure and powers of the inspectors.

Imposing conditions while granting interim bail to Neeraj Singal and directing him to co-operate with the investigation, the High Court had on August 29, 2018 said that "he shall not be compelled by the SFIO to sign his statement under Section 217 (4) read with Section 217 (7) of the Companies Act."

It had also said that the interim bail would continue "till an investigation report is filed in the Special Court in terms of Sections 212 (14) read with Section 212 (15) Companies Act, at which stage the Petitioner will, if it so necessitated, have to seek regular bail from the Special Court subject of course to the further orders in the main writ petition."