Bombay HC – Illegal Detention & Illegal Remand Orders for Want of Jurisdiction

The gist of the FIR is that the investigating agency received a credible information from a reliable source that a group of private persons including the Petitioners entered into criminal conspiracy and committed financial fraud by impersonation by making phishing calls/deceptive calls, from an illegal call centre, posing as Amazon Support Services Call Centre. They cheated senior citizens of US, Canada and other countries and fraudulently obtained the proceeds of crime via Gift Cards, Cryptocurrency. The call centre was located at Igatpuri, Nashik. It was alleged that the Cyber fraudsters were helped by various unknown public servants of various Public and Private Sector banks in India for opening/operating of various mule accounts, for transferring the Cyber fraud proceeds through the means of various laptops, mobiles, computers and other electronic devices and network devices.

On 09.08.2025 at 12:15a.m., a team of CBI officers along with independent witnesses conducted a raid at the fake call centre running from Rain Forest Resort, Igatpuri, Nashik, where around 63 operators comprising of dialers, verifiers, closers and supporting staff/team leaders and Management were running the said illegal call centre. It was found that one application namely VICI Dialer was installed in the 49 laptops available on workstation of the said call centre and they used to manage the calling functionality and were cheating the foreign citizens. During the searches, huge cash to the tune of Rs.1.20 crores and 600gms of gold ornaments were recovered from the premises of Vishal Yadav. The Petitioners were operating at fake call centre. They were arrested from the call centre on 09.08.2025. They were produced before the learned Magistrate at Igatpuri. He granted Uploaded on – 21/10/2026 Downloaded on – 21/10/2026 14:48:42 6 of 44 wp-1100-26 (J) transit remand to produce them before the Special Judge for CBI cases, at Pune. They were produced before the said Court on 10.08.2025. They were granted police custody remand till 16.08.2025. After that, they were remanded to Judicial Custody till 29.08.2025. Subsequently, the Special Court extended the judicial custody of the accused from time to time. They were in judicial custody at Yerwada Central Jail, Pune. Specific roles of different accused were mentioned in the charge-sheet story.

This is a very peculiar case and has given rise to some important issues regarding taking cognizance, remanding the accused, question of illegal detention and the procedure adopted by the learned Special Judge and the learned Magistrate. The FIR in this case mentioned various offences and there was a reference to the offence under the PC Act, therefore, after obtaining transit remand of the Petitioners and the other accused, they were produced before the learned Special Judge for CBI Cases at Pune, who had territorial jurisdiction in respect of the offences under the PC Act investigated by the CBI. During the pendency of the investigation, the stand of the investigating agency was that the offence under the PC Act was committed and, therefore, the Uploaded on – 21/10/2026 Downloaded on – 21/10/2026 14:48:42 27 of 44 wp-1100-26 (J) learned Special Judge at Pune passed remand orders from time to time concerning the accused including the present Petitioners. The charge-sheet was filed on 03.11.2025 and the copies of the charge sheet were given to the accused and the Petitioners on 13.11.2025. Very significantly, the charge-sheet was not filed for commission of any offence under the PC Act, therefore, the learned Special Judge trying the offence under the PC Act had no jurisdiction; even to take cognizance of the police report.

The Petitioner No.1 Shaibaz Shaikh is the original accused No.5 and the Petitioner No.2 Sameer Siroha is the original Accused No.3 in R.C.C.No.77 of 2026 before the court of J.M.F.C., Igatpuri, Dist. Nashik. The petition is filed for their release, as according to the Petitioners, they are illegally detained. 4. In this case, the charge-sheet is already filed and the case is at the stage of framing of the charges. At the outset, we may mention that the allegations in the charge-sheet are quite serious. The FIR was lodged at CBI, EOB, Mumbai, on 08.08.2025 vide the FIR No. RC0682025E0005, under sections 61(2) r/w. 318(2), 319(2), 336(3), 338, 340(2) and 351 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (for short ‘BNS’), under sections 7(a) and 12 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (as amended in 2018) (hereinafter referred to as ‘PC Act’), under sections 66C and 66D of the Information Technology Act, 2000 and under sections 3(1) and Uploaded on – 21/10/2026 Downloaded on – 21/10/2026 14:48:42 3 of 44 42(1) of the Telecommunications Act, 2023.

Judgment dated 21.10.2026 of the Division Bench of High Court of Bombay in Criminal Writ Petition No.1100 of 2026 of Shaibaz Kaiser Ateeq Shaikh and another   Vs.  The State of Maharashtra and others