Adroit Industries says promoter faces five criminal cases

Adroit Industries discloses five pending criminal proceedings involving promoter Mukesh Sangla, including a Rs 50 lakh cheque-dishonour allegation, a factory-safety complaint and an excise case. Adroit Industries separately states that no criminal litigation is outstanding against the company as of the Red Herring Prospectus date.

How many criminal cases involve Mukesh Sangla at Adroit Industries?

Mukesh Sangla is named in five pending criminal matters disclosed under litigation filed against Adroit Industries’ promoters. The matters comprise a cheque-dishonour complaint filed in 2017, a factory-safety complaint filed in 2022, a central-excise proceeding and two complaints filed in 2026.

The disclosure records pending proceedings, not findings of guilt or liability against Mukesh Sangla. The five-case count excludes CRR/672/2024 as a separate matter because Mukesh Sangla filed that revision to challenge the October 8, 2024 dismissal of his discharge application in the same central-excise criminal proceeding.

Are the five criminal cases against Adroit Industries itself?

No. Adroit Industries states that it has no outstanding criminal litigation against it, no material civil litigation against it and no regulatory or statutory actions against it as of the Red Herring Prospectus date. The company also states that there were no material frauds reported by its statutory auditor during the last three fiscals.

The distinction is material because several disclosed cases name Signet Industries Limited alongside Mukesh Sangla, rather than naming Adroit Industries. The 2017 Micro Polypet complaint, the Quality Construction application and the Indra Mohan Jha complaint expressly identify Signet Industries Limited as an accused, while the supplied disclosure does not state that Signet Industries Limited is Adroit Industries.

Adroit Industries’ board adopted its materiality policy for civil litigation on March 10, 2026. The policy sets a Rs 98.1 lakh threshold, being the lowest of 2% of turnover, 2% of net worth and 5% of the three-year average absolute profit or loss after tax; criminal matters are disclosed separately rather than through that monetary threshold.

What do the cheque, factory-safety and excise allegations involve?

The 2017 Micro Polypet Private Limited complaint alleges that Signet Industries Limited and Mukesh Sangla issued a Rs 50 lakh cheque for supplies of polyethylene terephthalate, or PET, chips. The complaint says the cheque dated January 31, 2017 was dishonoured with the remark “Payment Stopped by Drawer” and seeks action under Sections 138 and 142 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1889.

Mukesh Sangla and the co-accused contend that four cheques of Rs 50 lakh each were security instruments issued during business dealings. Their application seeks cross-examination of the complainant and says no debt was payable because payments had been made after commissions, discounts and credit notes were adjusted.

The Factory Inspector’s 2022 complaint concerns an accident on December 3, 2021 at a Signet Industries Limited facility in Pithampur, Madhya Pradesh. It alleges that a worker sustained severe hand injuries while operating a production boiling machine because adequate safety guards were absent and the accident was not reported within the prescribed statutory timeline under the Factories Act, 1948.

The central-excise proceeding alleges that invoices were issued without actual supply of goods to facilitate wrongful availment of CENVAT credit, a credit mechanism for specified duties paid on inputs. The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal set aside a Rs 5 lakh penalty imposed on Mukesh Sangla on November 23, 2017, but his discharge application in the related criminal proceeding was dismissed on October 8, 2024 and his revision remains pending.

What are the 2026 contractor and employee complaints?

Quality Construction’s 2026 application concerns construction work at a Pithampur factory site under an April 21, 2025 purchase order with an agreed cost of Rs 76.1100118 lakh. The contractor alleges that it invoiced Rs 60.67291 lakh on December 1, 2025, received Rs 40.315 lakh and was left with Rs 20.35791 lakh unpaid.

The complaint also alleges criminal conspiracy, business fraud, criminal breach of trust, verbal abuse and death threats. A police report dated March 17, 2026 stated that the alleged location fell within the jurisdiction of Bagdur police station in Pithampur, and the court matter was pending at the appearance-of-accused or surety stage after the contractor sought directions for registration of a first information report, or FIR.

Indra Mohan Jha’s Complaint Case No. 372/2026 alleges unpaid salary and travel and daily allowances from employment as a Senior Area Sales Manager from August 11, 2021 to January 31, 2023. The complaint states that the monthly salary was Rs 50,000 and that the last salary payment, for September 2022, was received on October 14, 2022.

The disclosure states that four months’ salary from October 2022 to January 2023 amounted to Rs 20 lakh and travel and daily allowance dues totalled Rs 1.87384 lakh. It also states aggregate unpaid dues of Rs 3.87384 lakh, a figure that does not reconcile with the stated salary and allowance components; the matter was pending at the inquiry-witness stage.

How does the litigation disclosure compare across Adroit Industries and its promoters?

Adroit Industries reports no pending criminal, material civil or regulatory proceedings against itself, while the promoter disclosure lists five pending criminal matters involving Mukesh Sangla. The company also says there were no Securities and Exchange Board of India, or SEBI, or stock-exchange disciplinary actions against its promoters in the last five financial years, including outstanding actions.

The disclosure separately identifies two pending material civil matters involving Mukesh Sangla: an Income Tax Department appeal concerning a Rs 37.754812 crore penalty for assessment year 2010-11, and a Union of India writ petition linked to alleged excise-duty evasion. Those civil proceedings are not part of the five criminal-case count because the prospectus categorises them as material civil litigation.

Tax disclosures further separate the company and promoter positions. Adroit Industries reports 23 direct-tax cases involving Rs 1.50 crore and two indirect-tax cases involving Rs 49.8 lakh, while promoters report eight direct-tax cases involving Rs 54.6 lakh and no indirect-tax cases, to the extent ascertainable and quantifiable.

Conclusion

The litigation disclosure separates Adroit Industries’ stated legal position from the proceedings involving Mukesh Sangla. Adroit Industries reports no criminal litigation against itself, but its promoter is involved in five live criminal matters spanning a commercial cheque allegation, workplace-safety allegations, an excise proceeding, a contractor dispute and an employee complaint.

The disclosed next steps are hearings between September and November 2026, including the factory case on September 18, the contractor matter on September 19, the employee complaint on September 28, the excise revision on October 27 and the cheque matter on November 26. The excise proceeding remains particularly unresolved because the 2017 tribunal order set aside Mukesh Sangla’s Rs 5 lakh penalty, while his challenge to the later rejection of discharge remains pending.