Film director Kawal Sharma was arrested on June 7 in Bombay by the Kotwali police of Haldwani (in Uttarakhand). The arrest warrant was issued by the Haldwani court as Kawal had not presented himself in court despite a magistrate court’s order of one year imprisonment and a fine of Rs. 51.10 lakh. He was absconding since 2022.
Kawal Sharma, who has made films like Jeete Hain Shaan Se, Heeralaal Pannalaal, Gunahon Ka Devta, Zimmedaaar, Ustaad, Mar Mitenge and Namak, had borrowed Rs. 35 lakh from a businessman’s model-daughter in 2013, promising to repay the amount plus a profit of Rs. 15 lakh within 30 days from the date of release of his film. He issued her cheques of Rs. 50 lakh, all of which bounced. The model filed a case against Sharma under section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act in 2015. The magistrate’s court in Haldwani on January 17, 2019 sentenced Sharma to a year’s imprisonment and asked him to pay a penalty of Rs. 51.10 lakh. Sharma went in appeal against the magistrate’s order on February 19, 2019. The appeal was dismissed on May 9, 2022. Despite court summons and warrants for his arrest as well as public notices issued in newspapers, Kawal Sharma failed to present himself in court. Following this, a non-bailable warrant was issued against the filmmaker. He was arrested last week in Bombay.
