Gujarat HC suspends life term of ex-MLA Nalin Kotadiya in bitcoin extortion case, grants bail

Gujarat High Court has suspended the sentence of former Gujarat MLA Nalin Kotadiya till the pendency of criminal appeal and directed his release on bail, in 2018 bitcoin extortion and kidnapping case. 

Kotadiya had challenged the order of Ahmedabad Sessions Court before the high court, which had convicted and sentenced him to life imprisonment for his involvement in kidnapping builder Shailesh Bhatt from Gandhinagar and extorting 200 bitcoins worth Rs 12 crore. 

The applicant accused Kotadiya had also sought suspension on sentence before the court.

In 2012, Kotadiya was elected MLA from the Dhari Assembly constituency, representing the Gujarat Parivartan Party (GPP), founded by former chief minister Keshubhai Patel.

Builder Shailesh Bhatt had alleged that policemen from Amreli kidnapped him from Gandhinagar on February 9, 2018 and extorted bitcoins. Bhatt, in his application to the home department, had alleged that Kotadiya and the then Amreli SP Jagdish Patel were involved in the conspiracy to extort bitcoins from him.

On the instructions of the home department, the State CID-Crime had filed an FIR against Kotadiya and others under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for kidnapping, extortion and criminal conspiracy.

After evading arrest for several months, Kotadiya was finally arrested in September 2018 from Jalgaon in north Maharashtra.