HC denies interim protection to Kalra in case of hoarding O2 concentrators

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Friday refused to grant interim protection from arrest to absconding restaurateur Navneet Kalra, who was booked by the Delhi Police for allegedly indulging in hoarding and blackmarketing of 7,000 faulty oxygen concentrators at three upscale restaurants in the city.

A single-judge bench of Justice Subramonium Prasad, which presided over the hearing in the case on a holiday after an urgent application challenging a trial court's order dismissing Kalra's anticipatory bail plea was moved before the High Court on Thursday, said that the court is persuaded by the trial court order which rejected Kalra's application and is "not inclined" to give any protection to the accused at this stage.

During the hearing, senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, on behalf of Kalra, argued that Delhi Police officers have been visiting and questioning Kalra's relatives and stated that the police are influenced by the media and it is not their job to do so.

"They are visiting the house of the brother-in-law of the accused. His father-in-law is separately being paid courtesy calls...the job of the police is not this...it is influenced by the press. Today morning SI (sub-inspector) goes there and Mr. (SV) Raju is now asking for time," Singhvi submitted.

Additional Solicitor General SV Raju argued at the outset that the prosecution wanted time till Tuesday to collect evidence in the matter as facts of alleged "shell companies" related to Kalra have surfaced. ASG Raju further submitted that he is at the same time opposing an interim relief from arrest to the accused businessman.

Pertaining to adjourning the matter to Tuesday, ASG Raju told the court that "heavens will not fall" if the matter is posted for next week. He said that the matter was not "special" and Kalra is not "someone mighty" whose anticipatory bail hearing should be heard on a court holiday.

Justice Prasad however pointed out that the case was heard yesterday so as to not impede the investigation. "...the issue is to grant you anticipatory bail and impede investigation...the whole point of hearing the case yesterday was to avoid the question of temporarily impeding the investigation," the court remarked. During the course of the hearing, Singhvi submitted that since there was no price cap on imported medical items that were earlier fixed by the government, hence his client cannot be punished for selling that equipment to the customers.

The counsel further argued that out of the total equipment imported, around 7,000 of them, some of them were sold to police officers while some were also donated to Covid-care centres. The matter will next be heard on May 18.