The Delhi High Court on Friday quashed the Look Out Circulars (LOCs) issued by the CBI in 2019 against NDTV’s former directors and promoters, Prannoy Roy and Radhika Roy.
While pronouncing the order, Justice Sachin Datta said the LOCs would stand aside subject to the petitioners cooperating with the ongoing investigation, according to LiveLaw. The LOCs were linked to two FIRs registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation in June 2017 and August 2019. While the agency has already closed the 2017 case, the 2019 FIR remains under investigation, with no chargesheet filed so far.
Prannoy and Radhika filed petitions in 2021 challenging the LOC opened against them at the behest of the CBI pursuant to lodging of two FIRs in 2017 and 2019.
The 2017 FIR was registered after a complaint by Sanjay Dutt of Quantum Securities Ltd, alleging that RRPR Holdings Pvt Ltd, associated with the Roys, had taken a ₹500 crore loan from India Bulls Pvt Limited to acquire a 20% stake in NDTV through an open offer. It further alleged that RRPR Holdings secured a ₹375 crore loan from ICICI Bank at a 19% interest rate to repay the earlier borrowing.
The complaint also accused the Roys of pledging their entire shareholding as collateral without disclosures to regulators, including the Securities and Exchange Board of India.
However, the CBI later filed a closure report in the 2017 case, noting that interest rate concessions were not unusual and had been extended to multiple accounts between 2007 and 2010. The High Court accepted the closure report on January 23.