Rajpal Yadav, renowned for his lively comic roles in Bollywood movies, found himself at the centre of a very different drama this week.
The actor surrendered to the authorities at Delhi’s Tihar Jail on Thursday after the Delhi High Court refused to grant him any more time in a long-running cheque-bounce case.
According to PTI, a jail official confirmed: “He surrendered before the jail authorities at 4 pm on Thursday. Now the jail authorities will follow the standard operating procedure.”
The 54-year-old had asked the court for one more week, saying he had arranged ₹50 lakh and needed time to make the payment. But the judges were not persuaded.
The court said, “This Court cannot be expected to show or create special circumstances for any person merely because such a person belongs to a particular background or industry. Leniency, though sometimes necessary, cannot be extended endlessly, especially when it is met with continued non-compliance.”
The case stems from a complaint filed by M/s Murali Projects Pvt Ltd against the Masti Express actor and his wife, accusing them of issuing several cheques that later bounced and failing to clear the dues.
In 2018, a Delhi court convicted the couple, sentencing the actor to six months in jail. That verdict was upheld the following year.
In June 2024, the High Court had temporarily suspended the sentence and urged Yadav to take “sincere and genuine measures” to settle the dispute. But earlier this month, the court said he had repeatedly broken his promises to repay the money.
