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Court upholds cheating proceedings against M3M promoters in land dispute (Img: X)
New Delhi: A Delhi court has upheld criminal proceedings for alleged cheating and criminal conspiracy against real estate developer M3M India Pvt Ltd, its promoters Basant Bansal, Roop Kumar Bansal and Pankaj Bansal, and others in a Rs 450-crore land dispute involving a deal in Gurugram.
Principal District and Sessions Judge Anju Bajaj Chandna dismissed revision petitions challenging a trial court order that took cognisance of offences under Sections 420 (cheating), 120-B (criminal conspiracy) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). However, the court set aside the charge of criminal breach of trust under Section 406, holding that the essential elements of the offence had not been established at this stage.
In its October 17 order, the court said: "The impugned order to the extent that it has taken cognizance of cheating under Sections 420/120/34 IPC should not be interfered with at this stage as both the parties are at liberty to raise their submissions before the court of magistrate at time of hearing on the issue of charge."
The accused have been directed to appear before the chief judicial magistrate on October 27, while the trial court has been asked to proceed expeditiously.
Explaining its decision to set aside the Section 406 charge, the court said: "I am of the opinion that impugned order dated January 31, 2026 to the extent of taking cognizance under Section 406 IPC is not sustainable in law as the elements of the offence of breach of trust are not made out."
The proceedings for alleged cheating and criminal conspiracy will continue. The allegations have yet to be established before the trial court.
The case originated from a complaint by MGF Developments Ltd, which alleged that M3M and its group companies obtained rights over around 31 acres in Chauma village, Gurugram, without paying the full consideration agreed under a land exchange arrangement.
According to the prosecution, the deal was finalised in November 2016. The Chauma land was to be exchanged for a parcel in Mohammadpur Gujar village in Sohna, Gurugram, along with a payment of Rs 114 crore.
Around Rs 16.30 crore was paid upfront, while post-dated cheques worth Rs 98 crore were issued for the remaining amount. The prosecution alleged that the cheques were replaced twice but were returned unpaid on March 28, 2018, after stop-payment instructions were issued.
According to the chargesheet, the accused companies subsequently secured the mutation of parts of the disputed land in their names and applied for licences to develop residential projects despite the outstanding payment.
MGF alleged that assurances of payment were not honoured, resulting in the transfer of land rights without receipt of the agreed consideration. The complaint led to an FIR registered by the Delhi Police's Economic Offences Wing in 2022.
The accused argued that MGF lacked the legal standing to file the complaint and that the matter arose from contractual obligations, making it a civil dispute. They also maintained that separate land-owning companies had executed the exchange deeds and that the outstanding amount had subsequently been deposited in court.
MGF's counsel argued that the land transfer had allegedly been secured through false assurances despite the accused lacking sufficient funds to honour the cheques.
The court said questions about the complainant's standing and the civil nature of the dispute could be raised before the magistrate at the appropriate stage. It also noted that the evidence could not be examined in detail while taking cognisance.
Several civil proceedings relating to the transaction remain pending between the parties.
