India, March 31 -- The Delhi High Court has denied bail to a former bureaucrat accused of cheating over 500 homebuyers by inducing them to invest nearly Rs.120 crore in a housing project in Dwarka, describing the matter as a classic case of "deep-rooted economic offence" marked by deliberate "planning, deception, and abuse of trust".

A bench of justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, in a March 27 order, released later, observed that Neh Srivastav, who earlier served as an undersecretary in the Union home ministry, allegedly misused his official position, projected false credentials, and orchestrated a network of entities to siphon off public funds.

"In the considered view of this court, the present case is a classic example of a deep-rooted econ...