2 businessmen get 5 months in cheque-bouncing case -: Times of India_Mumbai; Date:2008 May 02

2 businessmen get 5 months in cheque-bouncing case
Mumbai: A city court recently held two Mumbai-based businessmen guilty for issuing cheques that bounced and sentenced them to five months’ simple imprisonment. The judgment came ten years after the case was filed in the magistrate’s court. The Girgaum metropolitan magistrates court also asked Rajesh Tolia and Darshan Shah of Karrox Technologies to shell out around Rs 6.37 lakh in fines. A major part of the fine has to be given to the complainant Hiren Goradia as compensation. The court also directed Tolia and Shah to surrender before the court in four days’ time. The case was filed by Hiren Goradia of Lotus Computer Centre Ltd which had signed an agreement with Karrox in 1993. Five years later in 1997, the agreement was terminated. Following claims by Lotus, a settlement was reached between the two parties arriving at an amount of Rs 13 lakh in dues. Karrox issued cheques to settle claims raised by Lotus. According to Goradia’s complaint, 10 cheques issued by Karrox to the tune of Rs 3.43 lakh had bounced in March 1998. Goradia had then filed a case under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act before the Girgaum magistrates court. Metropolitan magistrate M D Zodge convicted Tolia and Shah under the provisions of the act. “The case has been decided after 10 years and justice has finally been done,’’ said Goradia, who had pursued the case all these years in court.