The Bombay High Court on Monday refused to grant anticipatory bail to a Satara District and Sessions Judge, Dhananjay Nikam, accused of demanding a ₹5 lakh bribe in exchange for granting bail in a cheating case. [Dhananjay Nikam v. State of Maharashtra]

Justice B.R. Borkar rejected the Judge’s plea after hearing arguments from both the accused and the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB). The proceedings were conducted in-camera.

As per the ACB, Judge Nikam allegedly sought the bribe through intermediaries—the Kharat brothers, Kishore Sambhaji Kharat from Mumbai and Anand Mohan Kharat from Satara—who approached the complainant on his behalf. 

The agency’s investigation indicated that Nikam was involved in the bribery scheme and had colluded with the intermediaries.

In his anticipatory bail petition, Nikam strongly denied the allegations, calling them baseless. He argued that there was no direct evidence linking him to the bribe demand or acceptance of money. He also stated that he was on leave or deputation when the alleged bribery discussions took place and had no involvement in the case.

Furthermore, he asserted that he had neither issued any bail orders nor promised a favourable decision. Nikam also claimed he was unaware of any meetings between the complainant and the intermediaries.

During a previous hearing, the High Court had directed an HDFC Bank branch in Satara to provide CCTV footage from December 9, 2024. This directive came after the court was informed that the footage could substantiate the prosecution’s claim that an incriminating conversation took place between the accused judge and the complainant while they were traveling in a car towards the bank.

After reviewing the arguments and evidence, the court ultimately denied anticipatory bail to Nikam.