Summary of this article
The Delhi High Court sentenced Rajpal Yadav to three months’ simple imprisonment in cheque bounce cases.
The court said he repeatedly failed to honour repayment assurances despite multiple opportunities.
It also ordered financial penalties for him and his wife.
The Delhi High Court has sentenced actor Rajpal Yadav to three months of simple imprisonment in a long-running case of multiple bounced cheques. With this judgment, Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma marked the end of seven cases filed by M/s Murli Projects Private Limited against the Bollywood actor who failed to repay the debt.
The court sentenced Yadav to three months of simple imprisonment for each case. However, the court ordered a concurrent imprisonment for each case, giving him some relief, which means these sentences will run concurrently (running at the same time) instead of consecutively, which would have meant 21 months (three months each for seven cases).
The financial consequences for Yadav are also severe, as the Court has ordered him to pay Rs 1.05 crore each in all seven cases of cheque bounce. The consequences extend to a great extent to his wife as well, as the Court ordered his wife, Radha Yadav, to pay a fine of over Rs 5 crore 50 thousand to the complainant for each case.
The Court noted repeated failure on the part of Yadav in honouring his undertakings. It was observed that despite getting multiple opportunities to repay the debt and settle the matter, Yadav failed to comply. The Court noted that both Yadav and his legal counsel provided their assurance and statement several times to the Court, yet failed to honour the promises.
However, this is not the first time the actor has been convicted in this matter. In May 2024, a session court sentenced him to six months' imprisonment. Later, the Delhi High Court suspended the sentence when the actor gave an assurance of repayment and settling the dispute. However, it was not done as promised.
Meanwhile, the dispute was even referred to the Delhi High Court Mediation Centre, but because the payment was not made, the matter eventually continued.
On Friday, July 10, 2026, the High Court highlighted that Yadav failed to deposit the amount he had explicitly assured to pay, which includes a specific sum of Rs 2.5 crore for which he specifically sought and received permission to pay through instalments.
In February 2026, the Court took a stern view after his repeated delays and directed him to surrender before jail authorities at Tihar, Delhi, for non-compliance with earlier orders. The actor requested an extension of time to surrender, but the Court rejected the plea, saying that he cannot be treated differently because he belongs to a specific industry or background.
Yadav, at last, surrendered on February 5 and remained in custody until he was granted an interim suspension, contingent on his deposit of Rs 1.5 crore with the complainant.
However, the legal proceedings continued because he didn’t repay the full debt. And thus, the Court moved forward, awarding him a three-month sentence.
The Court, however, has granted Yadav a two-month window to challenge this order before a higher court.
