On a packed morning at the Aurangabad Bench of the Bombay High Court, the judges made it clear they were not inclined to reopen an investigation that had already run its course. A criminal writ petition filed by former MLA Anil Umrao Gote, seeking further investigation into an old cooperative bank scam from Dhule, was dismissed, with the court even going a step further by forfeiting the costs deposited by him. The order was pronounced on December 16, 2025, bringing a long-running procedural dispute to a close.
Background
The case traces its roots to allegations of large-scale misappropriation at the Dadasaheb Raval Cooperative Bank, where loans were allegedly sanctioned without proper security, leading to heavy losses. The original complaint was filed way back in 2009 by a depositor, prompting a magistrate to order investigation under criminal law provisions.
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Over the years, the probe moved from the local police to the State CID. A forensic audit followed, arrests were made, and finally, a chargesheet was filed. Gote, who was not a depositor or office-bearer of the bank, approached the High Court claiming that influential accused were being shielded and sought a court-monitored investigation by the Anti-Corruption Bureau or a special team.
Court’s Observations
The division bench of Justices Sandipkumar C. More and Y.G. Khobragade spent considerable time examining whether Gote even had the right to maintain such a petition. While acknowledging settled law that “anyone can set the criminal law in motion,” the bench drew a clear line between initiating a complaint and demanding further investigation through a writ petition.
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“The petitioner is neither a member nor a depositor of the bank and has not suffered any personal loss,” the bench observed, adding that the actual complainant had already pursued remedies and secured investigation orders earlier. The judges also noted that the State CID had completed further investigation and filed a chargesheet against 31 accused as recently as February 2025.
The court was unimpressed with the argument that the petition was filed in public interest. It pointed out that similar pleas by affected persons had either been decided earlier or withdrawn. At one point, the bench remarked that the petition appeared to be an attempt to “create pressure on the investigating machinery.”
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Decision
Concluding that Gote had no locus standi to seek further investigation in a case where the probe was complete and chargesheets were on record, the High Court dismissed the writ petition. The bench ordered forfeiture of the ₹1 lakh deposited by the petitioner, directing the amount to be split between two charitable institutions for the welfare of destitute persons. With that, the court closed the matter, refusing to interfere any further in the investigation.
Case Title: Anil Umrao Gote vs The State of Maharashtra and Others
Case Type: Criminal Writ Petition
Case No.: Criminal Writ Petition No. 476 of 2020 Anil-Umrao-Gote-vs-The-State-Of…
Date of Judgment/Order: 16 December 2025
