New Delhi, April 8 – The Delhi High Court on Wednesday dismissed a plea filed by Christian Michel James, alleged middleman in the AgustaWestland VVIP helicopter scam, challenging a trial court order that had rejected his application for release from prison on the grounds that he had served the maximum sentence of seven years.
A Division Bench of Justices Navin Chawla and Ravinder Dudeja upheld the trial court’s decision, stating that the petition lacked merit.
"We find no merit in the petition. It is accordingly dismissed," the bench led by Justice Chawla said.
Michel, a British national, had approached the Delhi High Court challenging the order of a lower court that refused to release him despite his claim that he had already served the maximum seven-year sentence for the offenses for which he was extradited.
Earlier, Special Judge (PC Act) Sanjay Jindal had rejected Michel’s plea, observing that he could not be released as he continued to face charges under Section 467 of the Indian Penal Code – a serious offense punishable by life imprisonment.
Referring to earlier orders passed by the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court, the Special CBI Judge emphasized that most of the issues raised by the accused had already been adjudicated, stating, "Judicial propriety does not allow for repeatedly reconsidering the issues when the higher courts have already provided observations on the same."
The trial court had relied on the observation of the Supreme Court in an order passed in February 2023, where the apex court had categorically held that Section 436A of the CrPC would not apply due to the presence of Section 467 of the IPC.
Under Section 436A of the CrPC, an undertrial prisoner who has served half of the maximum period of imprisonment prescribed for the alleged offense shall be released on bail, except in cases where the offense is punishable with death.
Michel, an accused in the alleged Rs 3,600-crore scam involving the purchase of 12 VVIP helicopters from AgustaWestland, faces multiple charges of corruption, criminal conspiracy, and money laundering.
He was extradited to India on December 5, 2018, from the UAE. Upon his arrival in India, he was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). A few days later, he was also arrested by the financial probe agency, the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Since then, he has been in judicial custody at Tihar Jail.