Oxygen concentrator hoarding: Delhi court remands businessman Navneet Kalra to 3-day police custody

Delhi Police had raided the popular Khan Chacha restaurant in Khan Market and another restaurant in Lodhi Colony, both owned by Navneet Kalra. A Delhi court on Monday remanded businessman Navneet Kalra to three-day police custody in a case related to the hoarding and black marketing of oxygen concentrators and other medical equipment during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Delhi Police arrested Kalra on Sunday night. He was on the run for over a week since the seizure of more than 500 oxygen concentrators from Khan Chacha, Town Hall, and Nege & Ju restaurants owned by him.

Metropolitan Magistrate, Archana Beniwal allowed custodial interrogation of Navneet Kalra by Delhi Police, which had sought five days of police custody for interrogation.

Navneet Kalra will now be produced before the court on May 20, 2021.

Investigating Officer (IO) Kamal Kumar asserted that his custodial interrogation is required to unearth the whole nexus and conspiracy behind the black marketing and know the trail of money transaction.

During the proceedings, Additional Public Prosecutor Atul Shrivastava told the court that Kalra has to be confronted with the co-accused in the case and that documents are voluminous for which his custody is required. It is a case of conspiracy. He had been evading arrest. This is a serious case. Without police custody, it will be impossible for the investigating agency to reach the conclusion, the prosecutor said.

Opposing the police custody, the counsel representing Kalra said that his bank details, mobile phone, laptop and gadgets are already available with police and that his custodial interrogation is not required.

On May 13, 2021, the Delhi High court had rejected his anticipatory bail application, saying that allegations against him are serious and his custodial interrogation is required to unearth the entire conspiracy. Pursuant to this, the accused moved the Delhi High Court, which also declined to grant interim protection from arrest in the case, agreeing with the reasons given by the trial court while denying him the relief. During a recent raid, 524 oxygen concentrators were recovered from three restaurants owned by Kalra in Khan Market and Lodhi Colony in Delhi. The case was subsequently transferred to the Delhi Police Crime Branch. The police claimed that the concentrators were imported from China and were being sold at an exorbitant price of Rs 50,000 to 70,000 apiece as against its cost of Rs 16,000 to Rs 22,000.

On May 5, 2021, a case was registered against Kalra under Section 420 (cheating), 188 (disobedience to order promulgated by public servant), 120-B (criminal conspiracy) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code, Essential Commodities Act and Epidemic Diseases Act.