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Mayank Pandey vs. State NCT of Delhi

Bail Application · 2026:DHC:8251Decided 24 Sept 2026New Delhi Bench
BAIL APPLN. 1486/2026CNR: DLHC010159022026
Justice Girish Kathpalia

Background

The applicant's anticipatory bail application, pending before this bench since April 2026 in a cyber-fraud FIR involving alleged forgery of a Dubai visa, became moot because a different bench of the same High Court quashed the underlying FIR entirely, apparently without being informed that this anticipatory bail application was already pending.

Decision Breakdown

The Court noted this was a lapse in the Court's own internal listing practice: ordinarily, when a bail application is already pending before one bench, any related quashing petition should be assigned to the same bench to avoid conflicting outcomes. Since the FIR itself now stood quashed (undisputed by both sides), the anticipatory bail application no longer served any purpose and was dismissed as infructuous, with a copy sent to the Judge Incharge (Criminal Side) to flag the administrative lapse.

Lesson Learnt

When related criminal matters concerning the same FIR (like a quashing petition and a bail application) are pending simultaneously, courts try to route them to the same bench to avoid contradictory rulings: litigants and counsel should ensure all relevant benches are kept informed of connected proceedings.

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