Archive · 18 Jan 2026
Mumbai Court Denies Bail to Builders in ₹2.18 Crore Cheating Case
A woman named Smita Panani paid a lot of money to builders for a flat in Mumbai.
The builders promised to give her a flat or return her money, but they didn't do either.
The woman complained to the police, and the builders asked the court for protection from arrest.
The court said no because the builders kept the money for a long time without giving the flat or refund.
The court thinks the builders might have spent the money elsewhere and wants to investigate.
Sessions Court denied anticipatory bail to builders Shailesh Mistry and Naresh Barot in a ₹2.18 crore cheating case.
Complainant Smita Panani paid ₹2.18 crore for a flat in a redevelopment project but was not given the flat or refunded.
Builders argued the case was a civil dispute and not criminal, but the court deemed it a clear case of cheating.
The court noted that the builders had used the complainant's money for over ten years without returning it or allotting a flat.
The court deemed custodial interrogation necessary to trace where the funds were spent or invested.
- Who
- Smita Panani (complainant), Shailesh Mistry and Naresh Barot (builders)
- What
- Denial of anticipatory bail in a ₹2.18 crore cheating case
- When
- Between 2011 and 2017 (payments), recent court decision
- Where
- Mumbai, Sessions Court, Vile Parle (East)
- Why
- Builders allegedly cheated the complainant by not refunding the money or allotting the flat
- Complainant
- Smita Panani
- Builders
- Shailesh Mistry and Naresh Barot of Pragatee Developers
- Amount Involved
- ₹2.18 crore
- Project
- Ajay Sahavas ‘B’ Co-operative Housing Society Ltd
- Location
- Nariman Road, Vile Parle (East), Mumbai
- Initial Booking Amount
- ₹50 lakh
- Allotment Letter Date
- May 12, 2011
- Court's Decision
- Denied anticipatory bail, deemed it a clear case of cheating