Bail to former coal minister Judeo, 4 others

New Delhi, Apr 18 (UNI) A city court today granted bail to former coal minister Dilip Singh Judeo and four others in connection with the sting operations conducted by a media house regarding grant of mining rights in 2003 in Chhattisgarh.

Special Judge I K Kochhar, granted bail to Dilip Singh Judeo, his private secretary Natwar Singh Rateria, Arvind Vijay Mohan, Rajat Prasad and B Singh Patel after furnishing a personal bail bond of Rs 2 lakh each and the like amount of surety.

The court also directed them not to leave the country without the permission of the court, deposit their passport and not to tamper with evidence.

The court granted bail on the grounds that ''the accused persons had not been arrested and they were indeed co-operating with the investigating agency.'' All the accused were present in the court except Amit Jogi, the son of former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Ajit Jogi, who is also an accused in this case. The court has issued a bailable warrant against the superintendent of the Raipur jail for not producing Ajit in the court despite previous summons. The court has fixed May 11 for execution of the bailable warrant which is also the next date of hearing in this case.

Amit is presently lodged in Raipur jail in connection with another case, of the alleged murder of Chhattisgarh Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) treasurer Ram Avtar Jaggi.

Judeo, earlier on April 5, sought bail on grounds that he was a victim of political vendetta and the conspiracy was aimed at seeking political mileage just prior to the assembly elections in Chhattisgarh in 2003.' Judeo and four others were caught on camera while allegedly accepting money in a hotel for granting mining rights in Chhattisgarh in 2003.

All of them were booked under sections 120-B (Criminal Conspiracy), 7, 13 (2), 13 (1), 12 of Prevention of Corruption (PC) Act.

UNI XC PK KN1838