Editor’s Note
This article details actor Rajpal Yadav’s surrender to authorities in a cheque bounce case. Before entering Tihar Jail, the actor made an emotional public statement regarding his legal and financial situation.
Actor Rajpal Yadav has recently been in the news regarding a cheque bounce case. Facing legal and financial troubles, Rajpal Yadav was ordered to surrender in Tihar Jail in a cheque bounce case involving approximately 2.5 crore rupees.
According to recent reports, just before surrendering, he gave an emotional statement. Quoting NewsX, Rajpal Yadav said,
The case began in 2010 when actor Rajpal Yadav took a loan of 5 crore rupees from Delhi’s Murali Projects Private Limited to make his first directed film ‘Ata Pata Lapata’ (2012). The film failed at the box office, after which difficulties in repaying the loan began.
The case reached the court, and in April 2018, the Magistrate Court convicted Rajpal Yadav and his wife Radha under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act. After seven cheques given to the complainant bounced, the court sentenced the actor to six months of simple imprisonment. This sentence was upheld by the Sessions Court in early 2019.
Subsequently, the actor filed a petition in the Delhi High Court. In June 2024, the High Court imposed a temporary stay on his sentence, stating that he would have to make “honest and concrete efforts” to pay the outstanding amount. By this time, the debt had increased to approximately 9 crore rupees. However, even after this, deadlines were repeatedly missed and promises were not fulfilled.
By October 2025, Rajpal Yadav deposited 75 lakh rupees through two demand drafts, but the court said most of the amount was still pending. After this, promises to pay 40 lakh rupees in December 2025 and the remaining amount at the beginning of 2026 were also not fulfilled. The court expressed strong displeasure over his “lack of seriousness.”
In early February 2026, Justice Swarn Kant Sharma ordered the actor to surrender. The court said that no one, no matter how big a celebrity, can be given relief indefinitely.
On February 4, 2026, the court also rejected his final “mercy petition,” in which he had asked for a week’s time to arrange the money. The judge said that Rajpal Yadav had already broken promises given nearly 20 times. The court made it clear that the law values those who follow orders, not those who violate them.
On February 5, 2026, during the final hearing in court, his lawyer presented a new cheque for 25 lakh rupees and a new payment plan, but the court refused to withdraw the surrender order. Justice Sharma said that the court has to maintain a balance between sympathy and discipline, and special circumstances cannot be created for someone associated with the film world.
Finally, at 4 PM the same day, Rajpal Yadav surrendered in Tihar Jail and will now serve his six-month sentence. Meanwhile, the High Court ordered the amount deposited with the Registrar General to be handed over to the complainant company.