HC extends stay on bail granted to NCP’s Anil Deshmukh
The Hindu
CBI sought to extend the stay as SC is on vacation and didn’t get time to file a petition at the top court
The Bombay High Court on Wednesday granted extension on the stay of former Home Minister of Maharashtra Anil Deshmukh’s bail to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) till December 27.
A single Bench of Justice M.S. Karnik granted time to the CBI to challenge Mr. Deshmukh’s bail order in the Supreme Court. The Nationalist Congress Party’s (NCP) leader was granted bail by the High Court on December 12, however, the same Bench had stayed it for 10 days.
Mr. Deshmukh, 73, is currently lodged at the Arthur Road Jail and was arrested by the CBI on November 2, 2021 in a corruption case involving ₹100 crore. He was granted bail by the Bombay High Court on medical grounds.
Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh appearing for CBI sought to extend the stay as the top court is on vacation and therefore the agency did not get an opportunity to exercise the remedy granted by the High Court.
Advocate Aniket Nikam representing Mr. Deshmukh, however, opposed the same and argued that CBI had sufficient time to file the petition in the SC and that the vacation registry of the SC was available to them for the listing of this urgent matter. He contended that the court should not show leniency and extend the stay on the bail order as the CBI with all the resources present with them, could not file the petition in the SC.
The court, however, granted relief to the central agency and extended the stay on the bail till December 27. Once granted bail, Mr. Deshmukh will be able to walk out of jail as he has been granted bail in the money laundering case against him by the Enforcement Directorate.
The case dates to March 20, 2021 when former police commissioner of Mumbai Param Bir Singh wrote a letter to the then Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray alleging Mr. Deshmukh of abusing his position and powers to seek illegal monetary benefits. The letter alleged instances of Mr. Deshmukh directing then police officer Sachin Vaze and others to collect ₹100 crores from bars and restaurants over a month.
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