Ahmedabad: A rural court on Tuesday sentenced Nirav Jebaliya, son of former IPS officer B S Jebaliya, to three years in prison after convicting him of cheating in a 2023 case linked to a forged high court stay order. Chief judicial magistrate J A Baxi convicted Nirav of cheating and acquitted him of forgery and criminal intimidation charges.The case was registered at Sola police station in Aug 2023 after the Gujarat high court rebuked police for failing to file an FIR against him. According to the prosecution, complainant Dinesh Rana alleged that he paid Nirav after he promised a favourable court order staying the preventive detention of a friend from Deesa in a narcotics case.Nirav provided Rana with a copy of the forged order. The order carried “2013” as the year. He later provided another copy with correction.When Rana demanded his money back, Nirav allegedly threatened to file false cases against him. During the trial, the prosecution examined 10 witnesses and submitted 14 documents, according to the complainant’s advocate, J J Abhvekar. In its sentencing order, the court stated that Nirav was 37 years old, worked as a private pilot, had family responsibilities, and had already served two years and seven months in prison. The court said, “Considering these circumstances, there are enough grounds to award less than the maximum punishment prescribed in law to the accused, Nirav.”
