Inside Tihar: Why Rajpal Yadav will stay in jail till Monday despite Salman Khan and Sonu Sood’s support

The court remarked: “You did not go to jail because the Court passed an order. You have gone to jail because you have failed to comply with your own commitments to the Court. You were not giving the money because the Court asked you to; you were giving the money because you entered into a settlement.”

The bench further stated: “25 to 30 times you appeared in this Court, and you were assisted by a senior counsel. Your senior counsel made statements on your behalf. Mr Yadav appeared through VC before me at least five times and said, ‘I will honour the statement made by my counsel, and if I go abroad, I will earn some money and make the payment.’ You are not misguided.”

The observation came after Yadav’s counsel argued that the actor had been “misguided.”

After hearing the matter at 1 PM, the court briefly adjourned proceedings until 2:30 PM, directing Yadav’s counsel to contact the actor and seek clear instructions on whether the money would be deposited in court or paid directly to the complainant.

However, the lawyer was unable to get in touch with the actor. The matter was then adjourned to Monday, meaning Rajpal Yadav will continue to remain in judicial custody until at least February 16.

Why Rajpal Yadav is in jail?

Rajpal Yadav’s surrender was not an overnight development but the culmination of a legal battle spanning over 15 years.

In 2010, the actor allegedly took Rs 5 crore from businessman Madhav Gopal Agarwal to finance his directorial debut, Ata Pata Lapaata. The film reportedly earned only Rs 37 lakh at the box office and failed commercially. Following the film’s failure, repayment issues began. Over time, the Rs 5 crore amount reportedly ballooned to approximately Rs 9 crore with accumulated interest.

Multiple cheque defaults followed, and the matter eventually reached court under cheque bounce proceedings. Yadav was sentenced to three months in civil prison for non-payment of the loan. While he was later granted relief on assurances that he would clear the dues in instalments, the payments reportedly did not materialise.

However, Rajpal Yadav has consistently maintained that the money was not a loan but an investment.

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In an interview with Lallantop, he said: “Three allegations have been levelled against me. One claims that I committed fraud of Rs 5 crore. The second says that I took a loan. Third, I did a fraud. But according to me, it was a security cheque that I invested, because I have never paid any interest on that money. The case is still pending in court, and I am grateful to the court for understanding my point of view.”

Calling it an investment, he added: “I received Rs 5 crore from Madhav Gopal Agarwal to make a film. I did not take it as a loan—he invested the money as a financer because he wanted to launch his grandson as the lead actor.”

Rajpal Yadav case: A brief timeline

2010–12: Rs 5 crore taken for film production; film flops, repayment issues begin.
2018: Conviction/orders begin in cheque bounce cases; Yadav serves three months in jail.
2024–25: High Court suspends sentence conditionally during settlement attempts; deadlines are missed.
February 5, 2026: Yadav surrenders at Tihar Jail after court refuses further extension.
February 12, 2026: Bail hearing adjourned; he remains in jail until February 16.

Before surrendering, the actor had reportedly stated in court, “I have no money.”

Bollywood steps in with financial support

Amid the legal turmoil, several industry colleagues have stepped in to offer financial assistance.

Sonu Sood was among the first to extend help. Music composer Amaal Malik announced support of Rs 1.11 crore. Singer Mika Singh promised Rs 11 lakh, Tej Pratap Yadav announced Rs 10 lakh, Anup Jalota pledged Rs 5 lakh, and KRK claimed he would contribute Rs 10 lakh.

Rajpal Yadav’s manager, Goldie Jain, told SCREEN: “A lot of people have reached out to help Rajpal Yadav. Actors like Sonu Sood, Salman Khan and Ajay Devgn have extended their support. I was just on a call with David Dhawan—he too reached out. Ratan Nain, Varun Dhawan… many people are coming forward to help him this time, which Rajpal has deeply appreciated.”

The list of well-wishers also reportedly includes actor Gurmeet Choudhary and singer Guru Randhawa.

ALSO READ | Why Rajpal Yadav couldn’t repay his Rs 9 cr debt despite earning in crores, having a 30-year career

Why Rajpal Yadav is unable to pay off debt despite his Bollywood career

The incident has also sparked conversations about the remuneration of character actors in Bollywood. A clip of actor Mushtaq Khan resurfaced in which he claimed supporting actors do not earn in crores, irrespective of a film’s box office success.

Reports about Rajpal Yadav’s recent film fees have circulated online. According to India.com, the actor earned approximately Rs 8 crore across five films — including Kathal, Baby John and Dream Girl 2 (Rs 1 crore each), Chandu Champion (Rs 2 crore), and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 (Rs 3 crore).

Not his only legal trouble

This is not the only legal challenge the actor has faced recently. In August 2024, a portion of Rajpal Yadav’s ancestral property in Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh, was reportedly sealed by a Mumbai-based bank over non-payment of another loan.