The Delhi High Court on Monday suspended Rajpal Yadav's sentence in the cheque bounce case, paving the way for his release from jail. Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma said the Bollywood actor's sentence will remain suspended till March 18, when the case will be heard next. The actor, who has been in Tihar Jail in connection with a Rs 9-crore cheque bounce case, was granted bail by the Delhi High Court on Monday afternoon.
The Court passed the order after Yadav paid ₹1.5 crore to the complainant. Yadav also told the Court that his niece is getting married on February 19. In view of the above developments, the Court granted him interim relief. "Interim suspension of sentence till the next date of hearing... You (Yadav) should be present in the court or remain present on VC (video conferencing). We do not want any discrepancy," the Court said. In May 2024, a sessions court had convicted and sentenced Yadav to six months' jail in a cheque bounce case with dues amounting to ₹2.5 crore.
However, the High Court later suspended his sentence on the assurance of his counsel that he was willing to amicably settle the issue with the production company he was indebted to. However, he failed to do so. On February 2, the High Court rejected Yadav’s explanation that the payment could not be made due to an inadvertent error in the demand draft. The Court noted that he did not take any steps to rectify the error.
The 54-year-old actor, known for his comic timing, had borrowed Rs 5 crore from M/s Murali Projects Pvt Ltd to finance his directorial debut film Ata Pata Laapata in 2012, which failed at the box-office, leading to heavy losses. Over time, bounced cheques, interest and penalties caused the outstanding amount to rise to nearly Rs 9 crore. To settle the dues, Rajpal issued multiple cheques to the lender. However, these cheques were dishonoured, triggering criminal proceedings under the Negotiable Instruments Act.
Yadav had earlier sought permission to pay the dues of ₹2.5 crore in two instalments - ₹40 lakh by December 16, 2025, and the remaining ₹2.1 crore by January 15 this year. The Court on February 2 noted that Yadav had not made the payments assured by him.
Thus, it directed Yadav to surrender within two days before a jail superintendent for failing to make payments to a complainant in a cheque bounce case. However, on February 4, he again made a plea for extension of time. This plea was rejected by the Court. Finally, the actor surrendered on February 5. Senior advocate Abhijat appeared for Yadav in previous hearings. Advocate Avneet Singh Sikka appeared for the complainant, Murli Projects Private Limited.
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