Aniket Nikam

Aniket Nikam (born 18 June 1985) ^[1] is an Indian lawyer practising criminal law at the Bombay High Court and the Supreme Court of India. He has appeared in several cases concerning anticipatory bail, criminal defence, and economic offences. Nikam is also active in public life and serves as a state spokesperson for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Maharashtra.

He is the son of senior advocate and Rajya Sabha member Ujjwal Nikam, ^[2] a noted special public prosecutor who was awarded the Padma Shri in 2016. ^[3]

Early life and education

Aniket Nikam was born in Jalgaon, Maharashtra, to Ujjwal Nikam, an Indian special public prosecutor and Member of Parliament, and Jyoti Nikam, a homemaker.^{[ citation needed ]}

He completed his schooling at St. Joseph's Convent Senior Secondary School, Jalgaon. He later obtained a Bachelor of Legal Science & Bachelor of Laws (BLS–LLB) degree from Government Law College, Mumbai, in 2008.

In 2009, Nikam completed a Master of Laws (LL.M.) from the School of Law at New York University, specialising in areas related to criminal justice. ^{[4] [5]}

Legal career

After returning to India in 2009, Nikam began practising as a criminal defence lawyer in Mumbai. ^[6] His practice includes matters related to anticipatory bail, criminal investigation, white-collar offences, and general criminal litigation.

He has represented clients before the Bombay High Court ^[7] , various lower courts in Maharashtra, and, in certain matters, before the Supreme Court of India. ^[8]

Notable cases

Nikam has appeared as counsel in several high-profile matters. Some of the significant cases he has been associated with include:

• Adarsh Housing Society scandal – Represented the Ministry of Defence in proceedings related to alleged irregularities in land allotments and permissions. ^[9]
• Raj Kundra and Shilpa Shetty Case – Secured anticipatory bail for the couple in an alleged cheating and breach of trust matter. ^[10]
• Vidyut Jammwal Case – Represented actor Vidyut Jammwal, who was acquitted in an assault case. ^{[11] [12] [13]}
• Nana Patekar ‘Me Too’ Case – Represented the actor in proceedings arising from a complaint filed during the 2018 Me Too movement. ^{[14] [15] [16]}
• Dhananjay Munde Case – Secured anticipatory bail for NCP leader Dhananjay Munde in a case relating to alleged financial misappropriation. ^[17]
• Narayan Rane Case – Obtained anticipatory bail for BJP leader Narayan Rane in a case involving alleged defamatory remarks. ^{[18] [19]}
• Anil Deshmukh Case – Represented former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh in a CBI corruption case. Deshmukh had already been granted bail in the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) case after the court considered all material on record. The defence, led by senior advocate Vikram Choudhry along with advocate Aniket Nikam, noted that this bail order had not been disturbed by the Supreme Court. ^{[20] [21] [22]}
• TRP Manipulation Case – Appeared for Shirish Shetty of Fakht Marathi in proceedings related to alleged rigging of television ratings.A city civil and sessions court granted bail to Shirish Pattanshetty, the owner of the Fakt Marathi channel, in the Television Rating Point (TRP) manipulation case. Pattanshetty maintained his innocence, claiming he never paid any money for rigging rating points. The defense, led by his lawyer, Aniket Nikam, successfully argued for his release. ^[23]
• NSEL Scam – Secured bail for Jignesh Shah, promoter of MCX, in a multi-crore commodities scam investigation. ^{[24] [25] [26]}
• Karjat Assault Case – Represented MLA Suresh Lad in a case alleging assault on a deputy collector. ^[27]
• Yashomati Thakur Case – Represented former Women and Child Development Minister in an alleged assault case. ^[28]
• Maharashtra Sadan Scam – Secured interim bail for MP Sanjay Kakade in a case related to construction irregularities. ^[29]
• Hindustani Bhau Case – Represented the YouTuber in a case alleging incitement of students during protests. ^[30]
• Gharkul Housing Scam – Represented MLA Gulabrao Deokar in a case concerning alleged fund diversion in Jalgaon Municipal Corporation. ^[31]
• Suspended GRP Officers Case – Secured anticipatory bail for three officers accused of extortion. ^[32]
• Sanam Hasan Case – Appeared on behalf of the family of Sanam Hasan, seeking transfer of the investigation to the CBI. ^{[33] [34]}
• Citrus Check-Inns Scam – Secured bail for promoter Omprakash Goenka in an alleged investor fraud case. ^{[35] [36] [37]}
• Pallavi Sansare Murder Case – Represented and secured acquittal for an accused in a double murder case in Pune. ^{[38] [39]}
• Tandav Web Series Case – Secured anticipatory bail for director Ali Abbas Zafar and Amazon executive Aparna Purohit in cases alleging hurt religious sentiments. ^{[40] [41]}
• Antilia Bomb Scare Case – Represented and secured bail for bookie Naresh Gaur. ^[42]
• Srishti Tuli Case – Represented the boyfriend of an Air India pilot who died by suicide, obtaining anticipatory bail. ^[43]
• Vijay Sharma Case – Represented a cosmetic surgeon accused of negligence by a model-actor. ^{[44] [45]}
• Sharjeel Usmani Case – Represented complainant Pradeep Gawade of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha. ^{[46] [47] [48] [49]}
• Param Bir Singh Extortion Case – Appeared for police officers implicated in an extortion case linked to the former Mumbai Police Commissioner. ^{[50] [51] [52] [53]}
• Krishna Nagar Murder Case – Secured acquittal of three individuals convicted in the murder case in Nashik. ^{[54] [55] [56]}
• Pramod Dhumal Case – Represented a journalist accused of sending obscene messages. ^{[57] [58]}
• Bhushan Kumar Extortion Case – Represented politician Mallikarjun Pujari in an alleged extortion matter. ^{[59] [60] [61]}

Political involvement

Nikam's political involvement began during his time as a student at New York University, where he participated in local canvassing activities as part of the 2008 Barack Obama presidential campaign under the guidance of Professor Derrick Bell. ^{[62] [63]}

After returning to India, he re-entered active politics during the 2024 Indian general election, when his father contested from the Mumbai North Central Lok Sabha constituency. ^{[64] [65] [66]}

In 2024, he was appointed a spokesperson for the Bharatiya Janata Party's Maharashtra.

In 2025, Nikam was part of a delegation that filed a complaint against the Maharashtra unit of the Indian National Congress, alleging attempts to incite violence through social media. ^{[67] [68] [69]}

See also

• Criminal Law in India

References

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