The Supreme Court on Friday issued notice on a petition filed by former Haryana MLA and Congress leader Dharam Singh Chhoker challenging the denial of bail in a money laundering case involving alleged diversion of more than ₹616 crore linked to a housing project.
The bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Vipul Pancholi took up the matter and scheduled the next hearing for June 17, 2026. Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal appeared on behalf of Chhoker before the Court.
The case arises out of allegations connected to an affordable group housing project developed by a company associated with the Mahira Group, which is allegedly controlled by Chhoker and members of his family. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has accused the former legislator and other co-accused persons of illegally diverting funds collected from homebuyers and laundering proceeds of crime amounting to approximately ₹616 crore.
According to the prosecution, money collected from purchasers for construction and development of the housing project was allegedly siphoned off and utilised for purposes unrelated to the project. The ED claims that the transactions formed part of a larger scheme involving financial irregularities and laundering of funds.
Earlier, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had rejected Chhoker’s plea for regular bail after examining the nature of allegations and the evidence gathered during investigation. The High Court observed that the seriousness of the accusations and the material placed on record did not justify grant of bail at that stage of the proceedings.
During the hearing before the High Court, Chhoker had argued that he was a senior citizen with permanent roots in society and had cooperated with the investigation. It was also submitted on his behalf that the trial was likely to take a long time to conclude and prolonged incarceration was unwarranted.
The Enforcement Directorate, however, strongly opposed the bail plea, contending that the allegations involved large-scale financial fraud affecting numerous homebuyers. The agency further argued that Chhoker had failed to cooperate during the investigation and did not satisfy the stringent conditions for grant of bail under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
While refusing bail, the High Court referred to material indicating Chhoker’s active involvement in the affairs of several companies connected with the project. The Court noted that he had signed balance sheets and was associated with the functioning of entities allegedly involved in the diversion of funds.
The High Court also took note of the ED’s allegations that Chhoker repeatedly ignored summons issued during the course of investigation. The Court recorded that on several occasions he failed to appear before investigators, leading to issuance of non-bailable warrants.
Further observations in the order stated that when authorities attempted to execute the warrants, Chhoker was allegedly not found at his residence multiple times. The Court also referred to the prosecution’s claim that he was eventually apprehended after allegedly attempting to evade arrest from a hotel in Delhi.
The High Court additionally observed that although an earlier order taking cognisance of the complaint had been set aside and remanded, cognisance was subsequently taken again and the trial was now ready to commence. It held that the delay in trial proceedings could not be attributed solely to the prosecution.
The Court further ruled that the custody undergone by Chhoker since May 4, 2025, could not be considered excessive in light of the gravity and magnitude of the allegations involved in the case.
The Supreme Court will now examine the challenge to the High Court’s order when the matter is taken up again in June.
Case Details
Case Title: Dharam Singh Chhoker v. Directorate of Enforcement
Case No. : SLP(Crl) No. 7383/2026
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