Goregaon finfluencer case: Bail hearing put off in Denron arbitration case

Ashesh Mehta and his wife Shivangi. File Pics

An Economic Offences Wing (EOW) team investigating the Rs 200 crore fake arbitration case involving Denron Rea IT and Bliss Consultants - the trading company owned by finfluencer Ashesh Mehta and his wife Shivangi - has claimed that it has unearthed the mastermind behind the plot.

The complex case came to light when the Madhya Pradesh police arrested a Mumbai man carrying drugs in 2023. His interrogation led them to the Goregaon couple, exposing questionable financial dealings, eventually resulting in the case landing with the EOW.

Records of transactions that were termed fraudulent

Ajay Harinath Singh, the chairman and managing director of Darwin Platform Group of Companies, then came forward to claim that he had paid R200 crore in cash to Bliss Consultants and submitted receipts to the Bombay High Court in a sealed envelope. As the investigation progressed, Singh applied for anticipatory bail in October. The bail hearing was set for Thursday but was adjourned till December 19.

After Singh submitted the documents in court, Nikki Shaha, who holds the power of attorney for Ashesh, filed a complaint alleging that Denron Rea IT had submitted fraudulent documents in the Mehta couple's name to secure an arbitration order worth R200 crore.

Further, it was alleged that a certain Sabir Rafique Khan impersonated Mehta before the arbitrator. As a result, the FIR, initially registered at Andheri police station, was transferred to the EOW for further investigation. The FIR names Denron Rea IT, along with its directors Hariprasad Akalu Paswan, Rameshkumar Yadav, and Sabir Rafique Khan, as accused.

Ajay Harinath Singh. File Pic

During the investigation, Denron director Hariprasad Paswan denied involvement in the fraudulent R200 crore arbitration case against Bliss Consultants, claiming his signatures were forged, and alleging that the entire operation was orchestrated by Ajay Harinath Singh and his associate Ajay Kumar Pasi. Paswan said, "All fraudulent documents and proceedings against Bliss Consultants have been initiated, orchestrated, and perpetrated by Ajay Harinath Singh, aided by advocate Dharmendra V Patel and Ajay Kumar Pasi for reasons best known to them."

Fearing arrest, Singh had approached the Mumbai sessions court seeking anticipatory bail in October. The court has prohibited the agency from taking any action against Singh till the hearing of the anticipatory bail application and had ordered Singh to be present at the EOW's office every other day until the next hearing and to cooperate with the investigation.

According to EOW sources, the agency has informed the court that Singh is not cooperating with the investigation. His mobile phone is frequently switched off, and the address mentioned in his application, located in the Prabhadevi area, is a rented property where he does not reside, sources said. When Singh appeared before the agency for the first time, he claimed his residence was in Goregaon. However, he has refused to disclose his actual address and is allegedly concealing it from the authorities.

An officer told mid-day that during the investigation, documents obtained from the bank and those related to Denron Rea IT Private Limited Company revealed that while the company's official director is someone else, the control and signature rights are held only by Singh.

Further, the arbitration order highlights that the signature rights for the account, where funds from the Bliss Consultants' account were supposed to be transferred, is also under Singh's control. This establishes that Singh is the primary mastermind behind the conspiracy, the sources said.

In his bail application, Singh claimed to have invested R200 crore with Bliss Consultants and submitted a GST bill for this amount. He intended to demonstrate to the court that GST had also been paid on the invested amount. However, upon investigation by GST officials, it was revealed that the chalan was fake because the name of the company mentioned for the credit of the chalan was also fake.

In the same case, the EOW had previously arrested advocate Amit Chaurasiya, an assistant of Singh's lawyer Dharmendra Patel. Patel who was representing Denron, also filed an anticipatory bail plea, which the additional sessions court rejected. "However, he was initially granted five days of interim relief on the condition that he would appear before the EOW and cooperate with their investigation. Singh, too, approached the court seeking anticipatory bail after that," the officer added.

Speaking with mid-day, the Mehta couple's lawyer said, "The intervening director has denied authorising the arbitration or the alleged agreements, further exposing the fabrication of documents."