The Supreme Court on Friday refused to direct the clubbing of multiple FIRs registered against Sameer Agrawal of the Saga group, who is accused of defrauding thousands of investors across several states. Agrawal allegedly fled to Dubai after misappropriating approximately Rs 10,000 crore in maturity amounts belonging to depositors of a cooperative society.
Court's Stance on Clubbing FIRs
Rejecting the plea filed by the absconding accused, a bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymlaya Bagchi observed that clubbing of FIRs would serve as a bonanza for the accused. The bench noted that when a person cheats thousands of investors, each incident constitutes an independent subject matter warranting a separate FIR.
Senior advocate R Basant, representing Agrawal, argued that the court had previously clubbed FIRs when they were based on the same fundamental allegations, to prevent the accused from traveling across states for trial. However, the Chief Justice countered that the victims would be forced to travel long distances to depose before the court, while the accused would enjoy the convenience of remaining in one place.
Victim-Centric Approach
The Supreme Court emphasized a victim-centric approach, stating, "If a group of people who are duped come together for the clubbing of the FIRs, the court will consider. Our approach must be victim-centric." The court also directed the probe agencies to apprehend the accused and bring him to India to face trial.
Currently, there are 33 FIRs registered against Agrawal in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, and Haryana for failing to pay maturity amounts to depositors. The court added that if the accused deposits the entire Rs 10,000 crore for refund, it would consider his plea.
