IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION WRIT PETITION NO. 70 OF 2008 Vinod Gurbux Motwani ..... ...... ......Petitioner V/s State of Maharashtra & Anr. ..... ...... ......Respondents. Mr.S.V.Marwadi i/by Mr.Dilip Devadiga, Adv. For the petitioner. Mrs.A.T.Jhaveri, APP for the State. Mrs.P.H.Kantharia for respondent No.2. CORAM: A.P.DESHPANDE, J. 29/1/08 PC: Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. Taken up for final hearing by consent of both the parties. According to the petitioner he carries on business and for the purpose of his business engagement he has to travel abroad. The petitioner is facing prosecution vide RC No.6(E)/07 registered with the CBI. The case against the petitioner is filed under section 120B read with section 420, 467 and 468 of Indian Penal Code and under section 13(2) read with section 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Undisputedly the passport of the petitioner has been seized by respondent No.2-officer-in-charge of CBI, Mumbai on 21.11.07. As the petitioner was desirous of going abroad for his 1 business engagements he moved an application before the Special Judge vide Misc. Application No.8/08. The Special Judge though directed the respondent to return the passport of the applicant it imposed certain conditions viz. hat (i)on return the applicant shall hand over the passport to respondent No.2, (ii)the applicant shall deposit sum of Rs.10 lacs as security deposit with the Registrar of the Court and on failure to return the passport on the date mentioned in the order the amount of Rs.10 lacs shall stand forfeited to the State. (iii)The applicant is then directed to deposit passport of his wife and his daughter with CBI when CBI hands over passport of the applicant and lastly applicant is directed to intimate his itinerary and schedule of his visit abroad by furnishing complete address and contact number to respondent before the stipulated date. 2. Aggrieved by the said conditions so imposed, the present writ petition has been filed. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner for quite some time. He has placed reliance on a judgment of the Supreme Court rendered in Criminal Appeal No.179/08 arising out of SLP (Cri.) 3408/07 and submits that the CBI has no authority to retain or impound the passport of the applicant. However in all fairness learned counsel for the petitioner has stated that the petitioner has no objection for depositing the passport of his wife with CBI respondent No.2 before he leaves for a trip abroad. He also does not object to furnishing of itinerary and schedule of his visit together with complete address and contact number. He has only objection to 2 handing over of the passport of the daughter as according to the petitioner the daughter needs the passport as she is appearing for Graduate Management Admission Test which I am informed is international examination being conducted by Graduate Management Council. The petitioner also objects to the condition of deposit of Rs.10 lacs and its forfeiture to the State on default of the condition. Learned counsel for the Respondent in the same spirit does not object to the modification of conditions imposed by Special Judge by issuing direction to the applicant to deposit passport of his wife and undertaking to be filed in this Court that the applicant' s daughter shall not leave India until he returns back. On concession made available by learned advocates for respective parties I proceed to modify the order passed by the Special Judge as under : Respondent No.2-Officer in charge of CBI shall hand over the passport to the petitioner herein on 30.1.08 viz. Tomorrow. The applicant shall return the passport to respondent No.2 on his return to India from Hong Kong and according to schedule the petitioner is likely to return to India by 10.2.08. The petitioner shall deposit passport of his wife with respondent No.2 tomorrow itself i.e. On 30.1.08 and collect the same after he hands over his passport after his return from Hong Kong. The petitioner shall file an undertaking in this Court that his daughter Shweta will not leave India till the return of the petitioner from Hong Kong. The petitioner shall deposit the sum of Rs.2 lacs with the Registrar of Special Court by tomorrow. 3 The petitioner shall intimate his itinerary and schedule of his arrival in India. Writ petition thus stands disposed of in above terms. Rule made absolute. 29.1.08 4