Bombay High Court closes case against 3 lawyers

The case arose from a CBI search operation carried out in November 2007 at the office of a company linked to one of the applicants’ clients, Sonal Chitroda.

The lawyers – Gobindram Daryanomal Talreja, Haresh Sobhraj Motwani and Prateek Naushad Sanghvi (trainee) – were accused of obstructing CBI officers during the raid.

The incident started when his client Talreja (one of the lawyers) informed that CBI officers had come to his office to investigate financial irregularities. While in court at the time, Talreja assured Chitroda that the officers’ investigation would proceed smoothly.

However, around 4.45 pm that afternoon, Chitroda reported the mistreatment by CBI officers, prompting Talreja to send Motwani and Sanghvi to his office. On arrival, the two lawyers interrogated the officers, demanded to see their identification cards and insisted on being present during the search.

Tensions escalated when one of the CBI officers demanded that Talreja hand over his phone and Talreja refused. The lawyers were arrested later that evening but were released on bail the next day.

In 2008, the CBI filed a criminal complaint under Section 353 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), accusing the lawyers of obstructing the duties of officers. The lawyers vehemently denied the allegations, arguing that they were merely acting in their role as legal representatives.