# Bombay HC quashes CBI bribery case against ex-Jet Airways staff 2026-11-08T08:51:41+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 2 independent outlets The Bombay High Court on Thursday, 5 November 2026, quashed the FIR, chargesheet and all criminal proceedings against four former Jet Airways employees, three pilots and a ground staffer, who were accused of bribing an EPFO officer to process their provident fund claims. Justice Milind Jadhav ruled that the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case under the Prevention of Corruption Act and criminal conspiracy charges, saying the material did not show criminal intent. The four employees had approached a private intermediary, Machindra Bamne, who was recommended as a consultant, to help them access their PF dues after technical glitches on the EPFO portal prevented them from withdrawing the money. Bamne, who turned out to be an EPFO security assistant, was paid Rs 1.77 lakh by 13 claimants into a joint account he held with his wife. The CBI registered the case in July 2023 and filed a chargesheet, but the court found no evidence that the petitioners knew Bamne was a public servant. The judge noted that Bamne had concealed his consultancy business from the EPFO, supporting the petitioners' claim that they believed they were dealing with a private consultant. The court also held that mere payment of money to a person who happens to be a public servant does not automatically constitute an offence under Section 8 of the PC Act, and that continuing the proceedings would be an abuse of the process of law. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The Times of India and Hindustan Times both reported the Bombay High Court's decision in straight, neutral-report style, with no discernible slant. The coverage is uniform: both outlets led with the court's finding that the prosecution failed to prove criminal intent, and both highlighted the key argument that the petitioners believed Bamne was a private consultant. The only minor difference is in structure: The Times of India gave more weight to the petitioners' advocates' arguments, while Hindustan Times detailed the CBI's counter-arguments. Both versions agreed on the core facts, the FIR date, the amount transferred, the legal sections cited, leaving no conflict in the reporting. The uniform framing underscores that the court's reasoning, not the CBI's initial allegations, shaped the outcome of the case. ## Coverage Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral - timesofindia.indiatimes.com (neutral report) Straight news report, no slant detected. - hindustantimes.com (neutral report) Straight news report, no slant detected. This brief was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Tags: Bombay High Court, CBI, EPFO, Jet Airways, Prevention of Corruption Act Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/bombay-hc-quashes-cbi-bribery-case-against-ex-jet-airways-staff/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/bombay-hc-quashes-cbi-bribery-case-against-ex-jet-airways-staff/#story-in-brief How this brief was made: an AI model read the reports linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. Stance labels are editorial classifications of how each outlet framed this story, assigned by the same model, not ratings of the outlets. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/