Supreme Court dismisses Vundavalli Arun Kumar’s plea against Margadarsi Financiers
Hyderabad, Aug 20 (TNT): The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a Special Leave Petition filed by former MP Vundavalli Arun Kumar challenging a Telangana High Court judgment that set aside criminal proceedings against Hyderabad-based Margadarsi Financiers (MF).
A bench comprising Justice M.M. Sundresh and Justice Prasanna Varale dismissed the petition filed against the August 4, 2025 judgment of the Telangana High Court.
According to a press note issued by Margadarsi Financiers, the Supreme Court questioned the locus of Vundavalli Arun Kumar in filing the petition and observed that the arguments made by his counsel indicated that the matter was a personal dispute between the parties.
Senior counsel appearing for MF submitted that more than Rs 2,591 crore had already been refunded to the company’s depositors and Rs 5.23 crore remained secured in an escrow account for payment to any depositor who may subsequently come forward.
The company said it had earlier filed an interlocutory application before the Telangana High Court seeking to have the criminal proceedings initiated against it in 2008 declared infructuous, citing repayment of the entire amounts to depositors and the death of its former karta in June 2024.
The original complaint against MF was filed in 2008 by the then undivided Andhra Pradesh government, alleging violation of provisions of the RBI Act by accepting deposits from the general public despite being a Hindu Undivided Family.
The High Court had quashed the proceedings against MF in 2018. Subsequently, on an appeal by Vundavalli Arun Kumar, the Supreme Court remanded the matter to the Telangana High Court in April 2024, directing it to invite claims and objections from bona fide investors and depositors and determine whether continuation of the criminal proceedings would serve the administration of criminal justice.
The Telangana High Court subsequently issued a public notice on September 26, 2024, inviting claims and objections from bona fide investors and depositors who had not received their amounts.
The company said no depositor came forward in response to the notice as all deposits had already been repaid. The High Court, taking into account the repayment of deposits and the death of MF’s former karta, allowed the criminal proceedings to abate.
The Supreme Court, in the latest proceedings, found no reason to interfere with the Telangana High Court’s decision and dismissed Vundavalli Arun Kumar’s petition, the press note added.
TNT TS
