CRM-M-22323-2026 and other connected two petitions ::1:: IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH (215-3) Reserved on : 09.09.2026 Date of Pronouncement : 11.09.2026 Date of Uploading : 12.09.2026 (1) CRM-M-22323-2026 (O & M) Rajat Kumar .... Petitioner V/s State of Haryana ...Respondent (2) CRM-M-39765-2026 (O & M) Pardeep Kumar .... Petitioner V/s State of Haryana ...Respondent (3) CRM-M-46059-2026 (O & M) Arun Singh .... Petitioner V/s State of Punjab ...Respondent CORAM: HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE JASJIT SINGH BEDI Present: Mr. Ashwani Prashar, Advocate, Mr. Kanwar Anshuman Singh, Advocate and Mr. Divij Kumar, Advocate (Thr. VC) for the petitioner(s) [in CRM-M-22323-2026]. Mr. J.P. Jangu, Advocate, for the petitioner(s) [in CRM-M-39765-2026]. Mr. K.K. Mishra, Advocate, (Thr. VC) with Ms. Avneet Kaur, Advocate, for the petitioner(s) [in CRM-M-46059-2026]. Mr. Vipul Sherwal, AAG, Haryana. ***** SUKHPREET KAUR 2026.09.12 11:00 I agree to specified portions of this document CRM-M-22323-2026 and other connected two petitions ::2:: JASJIT SINGH BEDI, J. This order shall dispose of three criminal miscellaneous petitions i.e. CRM-M-22323-2026, CRM-M-39765-2026 and CRM-M- 46059-2026 as they arise out of the same FIR. 2. The petitioners, namely, Rajat Kumar (in CRM-M-22323-2026), Pardeep Kumar (in CRM-M-39765-2026) and Arun Singh (in CRM-M- 46059-2026) seek the grant of regular bail under Section 483 of BNSS (Section 439 Cr.P.C) in case bearing FIR No.0394 dated 28.10.2025 originally registered under Sections 318(4) & 319 BNS (Sections 420 & 416 IPC) [(Sections 336(3), 338, 340(2), 61(2) BNS (Sections 468, 467, 471 and 120B IPC) and Section 66 d of the Information and Technology Act, 2000 added later on] registered at Police Station Cyber West, District Gurugram. 3. For the sake of convenience, the facts are being taken from the petition CRM-M-22323-2026 titled as ‘Rajat Kumar versus State of Haryana’. 4. The FIR in the present case came to be registered at the instance of Amir Chand Sachdeva and reads as under:- I, Amir Chand Sachdeva son of Shri Seva Ram Sachdeva, resident of 112-C Mianwali Colony, Sector 12, Gurugram. I am a senior citizen and 76 years old. On October 27, 2025, I received a call on my mobile No. 9711469224 from an unknown person with mobile No. 8931053906. The person claimed to be an NIA officer. Immediately afterward, the unknown person made a video call on WhatsApp. The caller was in police SUKHPREET KAUR 2026.09.12 11:00 I agree to specified portions of this document CRM-M-22323-2026 and other connected two petitions ::3:: uniform and the caller was not visible. The unknown person stated that you had an HDFC Bank account in your name, where the money used in the Pehalgaon attack was transacted, ₹ and that you had received a commission of 70 lakh in your bank account. After this, the person told me to go to the bank and send Rs.17,98,000/- to the account mentioned by them and said that this money will be returned to you after the investigation of the case is completed. The unknown person asked me for my Aadhar card and other details, which I gave and they sent me some documents on WhatsApp in the name of NIA, in which my name and Aadhar number were written. I was very scared and was asked to send the money to the INDUSIND Bank Account No.252519811996 IFSC CODE INDB10001077 A.S. Traders Dhampur branch as told by them. 1 transferred this money through RTGS from my Union Bank account No.388802010006510 through Cheque No.016254 on 27/10/25, whose UTR No is UBINR 22025102701357346. The unknown person is again sending documents on WhatsApp today on 28.10.2025 and is repeatedly making video calls from different mobile numbers 9213260186, 7848003693, 6375456583 and 8619874938, which I did not receive. When I came to know about the cyber fraud committed with me, 1 called 1930 and lodged my complaint, ACK NO of which is 31310250082040. You are requested to take appropriate legal action against the fraudster and help me in getting my money back. Thank you Sd- Amir Chand Sachdeva son of Shri Seva Ram Sachdeva, resident of 112-C Mianwali Colony Sector-12 Gurugram Mobile No.9711469224. 5. During investigation, on 29.10.2026, the complainant produced the screenshots of WhatsApp chats with mobile no. 8931053906, documents SUKHPREET KAUR 2026.09.12 11:00 I agree to specified portions of this document CRM-M-22323-2026 and other connected two petitions ::4:: related to RBI, arrest warrant in case no. 713/2025 of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India, asset seizure order NIA confidentiality agreement (which were shown by the accused persons to the complainant) and account statement of account no.388802010006510, which were taken into police possession. The record was checked online on the website of Hon'ble Supreme Court of India and the arrest warrant was found to be fake. Section 336(3), 338, 340 BNS were added in the present case. 6. The details of beneficiary account no. 252519811996 (Indusind Bank) were obtained. The said account was found to be of M/s AS Traders whose Directors are Shuyab Ahmed and Aftab Khan. Accused Shuyab Ahmed was arrested on 02.11.2025. One Oppo A3 and one Realmi C-35 mobile phone were recovered from him. Accused Aftab Khan was arrested on 02.11.2025. One Redmi mobile phone was recovered from him. Section 61(2) BNS was added in the present case. The amount of Rs. 17,98,000/- of the complainant was found to have been transferred into the said account. Shuyab Ahmed got recovered the SIM card of registered mobile no. 7000244292 of the above mentioned account. 7. On 05.11.2025, the photocopy of relevant page of entry register of Hotel Golden Key Residency, Kapasehra, Delhi, Adhaar Card of Shuyab Ahmed and Aftab Khan and CCTV footage of the said hotel were obtained. Shuyab Khan was found to have stayed at the said hotel on 26.10.2025 along with his companion Mohd. Azeem Khan for commission of fraud. The ID CAF and call details of mobile no. 8302509249 and 8931053906 were SUKHPREET KAUR 2026.09.12 11:00 I agree to specified portions of this document CRM-M-22323-2026 and other connected two petitions ::5:: obtained. The fake documents of RBI and NIA were found to have been sent through whats app from mobile no. 8931053906 to mobile no. 8302509249. The mobile no. 8302509249 was found to be in the name of Nanak Singh and mobile no. 8931053906 was found to be in the name of Gurfan. 8. It further came forth during investigation that from the above mentioned account no.252519811996, the amount of Rs. 2,48,000/- in account no. 60545062790, Rs. 5,91,000/- in account no. 354001000009852, Rs.1,08,979/- in account 3325221603805, Rs. 2,00,000/- in account no. 510909010336548, Rs. 4,00,000/- in SBI Account, Rs.2046/- in account no.258950645000 and Rs.50,006/- in account no. 926502010000222 were found to have been transferred. Section 340 BNS was deleted and Section 340(2) BNS was added in the present case. 9. The record of account no. 33325721603805 (North East Small Finance Bank) and the ID CAF of registered mobile no. 9729070552 were obtained. The said account was found to be of one Pradeep Kumar (petitioner in CRM-M-39765-2026). Accused Pradeep Kumar was arrested on 08.01.2026. One Samsung S-14 mobile phone was recovered from him. The said mobile phone was found to have been used by him in the present crime. It was taken into police possession. Section 66-D IT Act was added in the present case. 10. The challan against accused Shuyab Ahmed, Aftab Khan and Pradeep Kumar was submitted in the Court on 22.01.2026. SUKHPREET KAUR 2026.09.12 11:00 I agree to specified portions of this document CRM-M-22323-2026 and other connected two petitions ::6:: 11. A suspicious IMEI No. 356497105903288 was checked and it came forth that as many as 30 SIM cards were used in the said device and the said SIM cards (including mobile no. 8302509249 used in the present crime) were found to have been issued from Jassi Mobile, Ajmer (Rajasthan) whose agent is Arun Singh (petitioner in CRM-M-46059-2026). 12. Nanak Singh (holder of sim no. 8302509249) was joined in the investigation but he was not found to be involved in the present crime as the sim card was found to have been issued upon his KYC by Jaswinder Singh and Arun Singh. On the identification of Nanak Singh, Jaswinder Singh and Arun Singh were arrested on 02.02.2026. Accused Arun Singh got recovered Samsung Galaxy A-34 mobile phone used in the present crime. The prints of chats in the said phone were taken. One Redmi 14 mobile phone was recovered from accused Jaswinder Singh. They disclosed that they had handed over the SIM cards to Shaffkul @ Safik and Rekha Ram for commission of cyber frauds. 13. On the identification of accused Arun Singh, the accused Shaffikul @ Safik was arrested on 04.02.2026. His disclosure statement was recorded wherein he stated that he had handed over the activated SIM cards to Rajat Kumar (petitioner in CRM-M-22323-2026). Accused Arun Singh also got recovered his Nothing mobile phone used in the present crime. The chats of mobile no. 8040005958 were also taken into police possession. Accused Rekha Ram was arrested on 04.02.2026. Two mobile phones were recovered from him. SUKHPREET KAUR 2026.09.12 11:00 I agree to specified portions of this document CRM-M-22323-2026 and other connected two petitions ::7:: 14. The petitioner Rajat Kumar was arrested on 08.02.2026 at Hashimara. His disclosure statement was recorded. He got recovered one I- phone SE mobile phone without sim used in the present crime. The SIM no. 8302509249 was found to be used for the first time in the said device. He also got recovered another mobile phone Google Pixel having sim no. 8905939866 used in the present crime. The petitioner also got recovered 40 other Apple mobile phones and 87 SIM cards, which were taken into possession u/s 106 BNSS. The record of chats made with Telegram ID @hero0609 and Mery @Majila 7 from Telegram ID @drdrefi were taken into police possession. 15. During the course of hearing of bail application filed by the petitioner in the Court, the petitioner produced a DD No. 056006 dated 18.02.2026 of Rs. 17,98,000/- which was received by the complainant. On 01.03.2026, the response was received from RBI and NIA offices and the letters of RBI and NIA (shown to the complainant by cyber fraudsters) were found to be fake. 16. Thereafter, during further investigation, it came forth that accused Jaswinder Singh and Arun Singh used to issue SIM cards on the pretext of KYC for ration. Some of such sim card holders i.e. Kamalesh Sharma, Kamal Kishore and Om Prakash were joined in the investigation. The SIM cards were found to have been issued in their name by accused Arun Singh and Jaswinder Singh without telling them on the pretext of KYC. The record regarding the parcel of SIM cards sent by accused SUKHPREET KAUR 2026.09.12 11:00 I agree to specified portions of this document CRM-M-22323-2026 and other connected two petitions ::8:: Shaffikul @ Safik to the petitioner Rajat Kumar was obtained from Rajputna Couriers. The record regarding POS Name Jassi Mobile POS Code 0663300993 was obtained. 17. The challan against the petitioner Rajat Kumar and co-accused Arun Singh, Jaswinder Singh, Shaffikul @ Safik and Rekha Ram was submitted in the Court on 29.04.2026. 18. The learned counsel for the petitioner-Rajat Kumar (in CRM- M-22323-2026) contends that the petitioner has not been named in the FIR. There is no evidence that he was a part of any Telegram group or that he had sold SIM cards either in India or in Cambodia and had received money via Cryptocurrency. As he is in custody since 08.02.2026 but none of the 20 prosecution witnesses has been examined so far, the Trial of the present case is not likely to be concluded anytime soon and therefore, he is entitled to the concession of bail. 19. The learned counsel for the petitioner-Pardeep (in CRM-M- 39765-2026) contends that taking the allegations to be correct, the petitioner is found to have opened a Mule account which had received a sum of Rs.1,09,000/- only. As he is in custody since 08.01.2026 but none of the 20 prosecution witnesses has been examined so far, the Trial of the present case is not likely to be concluded anytime soon and therefore, he is entitled to the concession of bail. 20. The learned counsel for the petitioner-Arun Singh (in CRM-M- 46059-2026) contends that the petitioner was only an employee with Jassi SUKHPREET KAUR 2026.09.12 11:00 I agree to specified portions of this document CRM-M-22323-2026 and other connected two petitions ::9:: Mobile, Ajmer (Rajasthan). As he is in custody since 02.02.2026 but none of the 20 prosecution witnesses has been examined so far, the Trial of the present case is not likely to be concluded anytime soon and therefore, he is entitled to the concession of bail. 21. The learned counsel for the State, on the other hand, as regards the petitioner-Rajat Kumar (in CRM-M-22323-2026) , while referring to the reply dated 09.05.2026 which is already on record, contends that during the course of investigation, it has been found that Rajat Kumar was associated with Cyber fraudsters through Telegram groups and he used to enroll various companies and send the details of the same in the Telegram groups for which he used to earn money in Cryptocurrency. He had obtained SIM cards from accused Shafdikul @ Safiq, installed the same in his I-phone, activated E- SIMs of the same, obtained QR Codes of the said E-SIMs through E-mail and sent the same in the Telegram groups from his Telegram ID @drdrefi. He has sold E-SIMs to fraudsters in Cambodia. Therefore, he is not entitled to the concession of bail. 22. As regards the petitioner-Pardeep (in CRM-M-39765-2026), the learned counsel for the State while placing on record the status report dated 05.09.2026, contends that he was the account holder of a beneficiary bank account maintained with the North East Small Finance Bank (Slice) into which the defrauded amount had been layered and transferred through the chain of beneficiary accounts. Pursuant to his arrest, a mobile phone used by him in connection with the commission of the present crime was SUKHPREET KAUR 2026.09.12 11:00 I agree to specified portions of this document CRM-M-22323-2026 and other connected two petitions ::10:: recovered. It has been established that fraudulent activation of SIM cards used in the chain of the present Cyber fraud was done by the petitioner as well. Further, he is an accused in as many as 08 other cases. Therefore, he too is not entitled to the concession of bail. 23. As regards the petitioner-Arun Singh (in CRM-M-46059-2026), the learned State counsel while placing on record the status report dated 05.09.2026, contends that Arun Singh was working as an agent at the Telecom POS outlet Jassi Mobile, Ajmer (Rajasthan) in league with co- accused Jaswinder Singh. They fraudulently activated SIM cards by misusing the KYC documents of unsuspecting persons without their knowledge or consent and knowingly handed over the said fraudulently activated SIM cards to the co-accused Shafdikul @ Safiq @ Shaffikul @ Shaffik, Rekha Ram being fully aware that the same were to be used for the commission of Cyber offences. One such fraudulently activated SIM bearing No.8302509249 was directly used to digitally intimidate and threaten the complainant, a 76 years old senior citizen and to extract a sum of Rs.17,98,000/- from him. He, therefore, contends that petitioner-Arun Singh, is not entitled to the concession of bail. 24. I have heard the learned counsel for the parties. 25. The relevant extract of the reply/status report dated 09.05.2026 enumerating the role of the petitioner-Rajat Kumar (in CRM-M-22323- 2026) is as under:- SUKHPREET KAUR 2026.09.12 11:00 I agree to specified portions of this document CRM-M-22323-2026 and other connected two petitions ::11:: 18. That the role of the petitioner Rajat Kumar in the present case is that he was associated with cyber fraudsters through Telegram groups and he used to enroll various companies and send the details of the same in the Telegram groups, for which he used to earn money in USDT. The petitioner had obtained SIM cards from accused Shafdfikul @ Safiq, installed the same in his I-phone SE mobile phone, activated E-sims of the same, obtained QR codes of the said E-sims through e-mail and sent the said QR codes in the Telegram groups from his Telegram ID @drdrefi. The petitioner had earned 19050 USDT and after converting the same in Indian Rupees, he spent the same. The petitioner has got recovered I-phone SE mobile phone without sim used in the present crime. The sim no. 8302509249 was found to be used for the first time in the said device. He has also got recovered another mobile phone Google Pixel having sim no. 8905939866 used in the present crime. The petitioner has also got recovered 40 other Apple mobile phones and 87 SIM cards, which were taken into possession u/s 106 BNSS. The petitioner has been named by accused Shaffikul @Safiq in his disclosure statement, which is attached herewith as Annexure R-3. 26. The relevant extract of the status report dated 05.09.2026 enumerating the role of the petitioner-Pardeep Kumar (in CRM-M-39765- 2026) is as under:- 24. ROLE OF THE PETITIONER: That in so far as the role of the petitioner is concerned, it is submitted that the petitioner had played an active role in the commission of the present crime. As per the investigation, it transpired that the petitioner, was the account holder of a beneficiary bank account SUKHPREET KAUR 2026.09.12 11:00 I agree to specified portions of this document CRM-M-22323-2026 and other connected two petitions ::12:: maintained with North East Small Finance Bank (Slice), into which the defrauded amount had been layered and transferred through beneficiary accounts. chain the of The petitioner was apprehended. In pursuance thereof, a mobile phone used by the petitioner in connection with the commission of the present crime was recovered from him and taken into police possession. Thus, the material collected during investigation attributes to the petitioner an active role in facilitating and participating in the laundering and movement of the cheated amount through the beneficiary banking channel, thereby aiding the larger conspiracy of cyber fraud perpetrated against the complainant. 25. That in so far as the evidence against the petitioner is concerned, it is submitted that there is ample incriminating evidence on record in the shape of the petitioner's own disclosure statement, the recovery of the mobile phone establishing the fraudulent activation of SIM cards used in the chain of the present cyber fraud. 26. That apart from the present case, the complicity of the petitioner has been found involved in the commission of other criminal case, which are as follows: a. FIR No. 130/2025 registered under Sections 192(2), 191(3), 115, 329(3), 351(3), 61, 324(6), 110, 117(2), 238 BNS and Sections 3(1)s, 3(1)p, 3(2) SC ST Act at Police Station Aadampur, District Hisar- On Bail. b. FIR No. 253/2025 registered under Sections 190(2), 190, 115(2), 329(3), 351(2), 238 BNS at Police Station City Fatehabad, Haryana --On Bail. c. FIR No. 442/2024 registered under Sections 190(2), 190, 115, 329(3), BNS and Section 42 Prisons Act at Police Station Azadnagar, District Hisar, Haryana - On Bail. d. FIR No. 93/2024 registered under Sections 380, 411 IPC at Police Station City Fatehabad--On Bail. SUKHPREET KAUR 2026.09.12 11:00 I agree to specified portions of this document CRM-M-22323-2026 and other connected two petitions ::13:: e. FIR No. 25/2024 registered under Sections 174-A IPC at Police Station City Bhattu Kalan Fatehabad-- On Bail. f. FIR No. 108/2022 registered under Sections 379 IPC at Police Station N.S. Chopta, District Hisar-- On Bail. g. FIR No. 216/2021 registered under Sections 147, 148, 149, 323, 341, 427, 302 IPC at Police Station Bhattu Kalan, Fatehabad --On Bail. h. FIR No. 436/2025 registered under Sections 115(2), 126(2), 3(5) BNS at District, Police Station Raigarh Churu Raj-- On Bail. 27. The relevant extract of the status report dated 05.09.2026 enumerating the role of the petitioner-Arun Singh (in CRM-M-46059-2026) is as under:- 24. ROLE OF THE PETITIONER: That in so far as the role of the petitioner is concerned, it is submitted that the petitioner had played an active role in the commission of the present crime. As per the investigation, the petitioner, working as an agent at the telecom POS outlet Jassi Mobile, Ajmer, in league with co-accused Jaswinder Singh, fraudulently activated SIM cards by misusing the KYC documents of unsuspecting persons, without their knowledge or consent, and knowingly handed over the said fraudulently activated SIM cards to co-accused Shaffikul @ Shaffik and Rekha Ram, being fully aware that the same were to be used for the commission of cyber fraud. One such fraudulently activated SIM, bearing No. 8302509249, was directly used to digitally intimidate and threaten the complainant, a 76-year-old senior citizen, and to extract a sum of Rs.17,98,000/- from him under the false pretext of a fake NIA/Supreme Court proceeding. The petitioner's own mobile phone was found to contain incriminating chats corroborating SUKHPREET KAUR 2026.09.12 11:00 I agree to specified portions of this document CRM-M-22323-2026 and other connected two petitions ::14:: his role in the said chain of SIM-card facilitation, thereby establishing his active and knowing participation in the commission of the present crime as a co-conspirator. 25. That in so far as the evidence against the petitioner is concerned, it is submitted that there is ample incriminating evidence on record in the shape of the petitioner's own disclosure statement and amended disclosure statement, the disclosure statements of the co-accused Nanak Singh, Jaswinder Singh, Shaffikul @ Shaffik and Rajat Kumar, the recovery of the phone and chat printouts from the petitioner, and the mobile POS/IMEI records establishing the fraudulent activation of SIM cards used in the chain of the present cyber fraud. 28. A perusal of the FIR and the investigation conducted so far would reveal that all the petitioners are active cogs in the wheel in the commission of the offence in question. The complainant has been cheated of an amount of Rs.17,98,000/-. The case has international ramifications as well inasmuch as E-SIMs are being sold to Cyber fraudsters in Cambodia. The nature of the allegations are such that in case the petitioners are granted the concession of bail, they are likely to abscond from justice, tamper with evidence or otherwise influence witnesses. Even otherwise, Cyber offences of the present kind are a class apart inasmuch as they are easy to perpetrate but difficult to investigate and prosecute. Therefore, undue latitude cannot be shown to Cyber criminals in the matters of grant of bail. 29. In view of the above, I find no merit in the present petitions and the same are dismissed. SUKHPREET KAUR 2026.09.12 11:00 I agree to specified portions of this document CRM-M-22323-2026 and other connected two petitions ::15:: 30. The pending application(s), if any, stand disposed of accordingly. ( JASJIT SINGH BEDI) September 11, 2026 JUDGE sukhpreet Whether speaking/reasoned Yes/No Whether reportable Yes/No SUKHPREET KAUR 2026.09.12 11:00 I agree to specified portions of this document