Supreme Court: In a writ petition filed by actor and filmmaker Shreyas Talpade in connection with a series of FIRs lodged across multiple States alleging his involvement in a multi-crore investment fraud linked to the SAGA Group and its affiliated cooperative societies, the division bench of B.V. Nagarathna and K.V.Viswanathan, JJ. issued notice to the State authorities concerned and directed that Shreyas be protected from arrest pending further consideration of the matter.
Shreyas Talpade sought consolidation of all FIRs both known and unknown, arising from the same alleged cause of action, namely his purported association with the Group’s activities. He further sought transfer of the investigation to the FIR registered at Gomti Nagar Police Station, Lucknow, being the earliest known FIR, and requested that no coercive action be taken against him.
He submitted that his involvement was purely professional, limited to guest appearances at public events organised by the Group between 2018 and 2022, and that he had no role in the Group’s operations or financial transactions. He contended that his name had been unnecessarily included in various criminal complaints without any specific allegations or supporting material, which amounted to harassment.
The Court issued notice to the respondents, returnable on 29-08-2025. It directed that no coercive steps be taken against the Shreyas by the respondents until the next date of hearing in relation to:
- FIR registered at Gomti Nagar Police Station, District Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh; and
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FIR registered at Srinagar Police Station, District Mahoba, Uttar Pradesh.
[Shreyas Talpade v. State of Haryana, Writ Petition(s)(Criminal) No(s).264/2025, decided on 21-07-2025]
Advocates who appeared in this case:
For Petitioner(s): Mr. Sandeep Bajaj, Adv., Mr. Aditya Chopra, Adv., Mr. Naman Tandon, AOR, Mr. Mayank Biyani, Adv.