Delhi Court orders to frame charges against Gopal Ansal for cheating, forgery, criminal conspiracy

New Delhi [India], April 14 : The Patiala House Court of Delhi ordered the framing of charges against real estate businessman Gopal Ansal for offences including cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy with a private company and its promoters.

Metropolitan Magistrate Yashdeep Chahal of Delhi's Patiala House Court has put Gopal Ansal on trial under a section of the Indian penal code related to cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy in a matter pertaining to allegedly defrauding a private company and its promoters in the name of investment in a building at Connaught Place here in 1991.

"I find it a fit case to frame charges against accused Gopal Ansal for the commission of offences punishable under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471, 201, 120B IPC", said MM Yashdeep Chahal while passing an order last week.

However, the same Court discharged Sushil Ansal, elder brother of Gopal Ansal noted that the material on record is grossly insufficient.

"Apart from a bare statement that the fraud was not possible without the involvement of all the directors, there is nothing on record to implicate him," said the court in order.

According to the complaint, the complainant, Sachdeva and Sons Industries Pvt Ltd had in 1991 invested in Statesman House, which was being developed by Ansal Properties at Connaught Place, New Delhi through one Krishan Bakshi (now deceased) who was working at the complainant company and was known to co-accused Gopal Ansal.

"However, later the complainants learned that the receipts were issued only in the name of Bakshi and that too towards the payment of a single flat in the project. The accused persons conspired to deceive the complainant in order to extract money from them and diverted that amount for booking a flat solely in the name of Bakshi," the complaint alleged.

During the probe, it was also found that the accused had forged documents in the process to cheat. The court also noted that accused Bakshi and Gopal Ansal were known to each other.

The court while passing the order said "The stage of framing charges against the accused persons is indeed a crucial stage in the journey of a criminal proceeding as it allows the court to carefully look into the case of the prosecution, as discernible from the charge sheet, and come to a logical conclusion regarding the charges on which the accused persons are liable to be tried."

Notably, the satisfaction of the Court at this stage pertains to the material/evidence available against the accused in the charge sheet and a detailed evaluation or consideration of the possible defences that the accused may take during the trial is impermissible at this stage.