DEEPAK SHENOY Vs. STATE BANK OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) At page 52 of the Interim Application is a proposed itinerary of the Petitioner to travel overseas from 6/6/2023. It is decidedly ambitious because it continues till 10/1/2024. We do not propose to grant leave for this long period of time.

(2.) The Petitioner was once a director of a company, Suder Industries Limited. He says he has resigned from the directorship. He was a director at the time when the company's account was declared as a non performing asset. But it seems and this is undisputed, that the State Bank of India ("SBI") at whose instance the Look Out Circular or LOC in question and which is challenge in the Writ Petition has been issued, has taken no recovery proceedings or criminal proceedings against the Petitioner at all. As is now well known, these LOCs are issued under various Office Memoranda ("OM") which are in turn issued by the Bureau of Immigration. Amendments to the OM permit various public sector banks to initiate or trigger LOCs. A substantive challenge to the OMs and LOCs have been heard and judgment is awaited.

(3.) In these circumstances, and particularly since there no recovery proceedings or no criminal proceedings against the Petitioner we grant a limited permission to the Petitioner for his travel itinerary from 6/6/2023 until 6/7/2023. The LOCs in question issued at the instance of the SBI will remained stayed until 8/7/2023.