February 19, 2026
Tim Kiely has concluded the case of Ghanshyam Sarup Batra, a former prospective candidate for Mayor of London, following a re‑trial at the Old Bailey.
Mr Batra, who had declared his intention to stand as an Independent candidate under the name “Shyam Batra” in the 2024 London Mayoral election, withdrew before nomination after an LBC interview revealed that he was disqualified from acting as a company director. LBC also reported that he had previously expressed on social media a belief that extraterrestrials were “blending into our communities”.
The fraud concerned the collapse of Dylan Lettings Worldwide Limited, Mr Batra’s property management company. In May 2017, the High Court placed the company into Receivership. Within 45 minutes of the order taking effect, Mr Batra began emptying the company’s bank account, ultimately removing over £105,000 in just four days. When the company subsequently entered voluntary liquidation in October 2017, it was recorded as having no assets, with multiple outstanding liabilities including unpaid staff wages.
Mr Batra was first tried at the Old Bailey in November 2025. That trial was halted when, after 30 minutes of cross‑examination, he produced purported “new” evidence requiring his legal team to take further instructions. It was later established that the material had been disclosed to the defence years earlier but had been supplemented with Mr Batra’s own handwritten additions.
A re‑trial commenced on 10 February 2025, again at the Old Bailey. The jury unanimously convicted Mr Batra of fraud in anticipation of winding up.
He was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment, suspended for 18 months.
Tim Kiely was instructed by Sophie Cohen of the Insolvency Service.
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