Delhi HC grants a week to Vivo India officials to respond to ED’s plea against their release

The three executives arrested by the ED in December last year are CEO of Vivo India Hong Xuquan, Chief Financial Officer Harinder Dahiya and consultant Hemant Munjal.

On Wednesday, a single-judge bench of Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, while listing the plea for January 11, indicated that the court will pass a written order asking the three to report at the ED’s office on Friday and Monday.

With respect to the condition that the accused report at the ED office, Additional Solicitor General SV Raju for the ED submitted, “This is a condition imposed to see that they do not abscond. This is a case where an influential company has duped the country, economic loss has been caused of crores of rupees. There is all likelihood that if they go to China we cannot bring them back. Therefore strict conditions have to be imposed.” Raju further said that the order of the trial court is “totally perverse”.

The agency also argued that the condition imposed by the trial court in its order asking the three executives to report to the ED’s office every day till the high court reopens on January 3, be extended.

Meanwhile, senior counsels N Hariharan and Siddharth Agarwal, appearing for the executives, argued that the trial court had given a finding that the arrests were illegal. On the ED’s submission that there is an urgency in the matter, Hariharan said, “They have been released. The urgency is to send them to prison?” When asked, the senior counsels said the accused had already surrendered their passports.

As the senior counsels sought time to file responses, Justice Sharma orally said, “They will need to file a reply. I can’t deny them”.

Noting that the accused were not produced before the court concerned within 24 hours of their arrest (on December 21), Additional District Judge Shirish Aggarwal had ordered the release of the three calling their arrests “illegal and void”. Directing the accused to furnish personal bonds worth Rs 2 lakh, the trial court had also put certain conditions on them such as not tampering with evidence, not leaving India without the trial court’s permission and surrendering their passports in the court.

In October last year, the ED had arrested four persons, including a Chinese national and the MD of Lava International mobile company, in connection with the case.