CBI vs CBI: Court grants bail to Dubai based investment banker Manoj Prasad

New Delhi, Dec 18: Patiala House Court granted bail to Dubai based investment banker Manoj Prasad who was accused of taking a bribe on behalf of Special CBI Director Rakesh Asthana.

Manoj Prasad was arrested by the CBI on October 16 for allegedly asking Rs 5 crore from Hyderabad-based businessman Satish Babu Sana.

Based on Sana's complaint that an FIR was lodged against CBI Special Director Rakesh Asthana. According to Sana, Manoj was operating on behalf of Asthana and had promised that CBI would go soft on him if he pays up a bribe of Rs 5 crore.

However, Asthana had alleged that Sana did give a bribe, but it was paid to CBI Director Alok Verma. While Verma has not made a public statement on this, the CBI, in an unprecedented step, booked Asthana (its number two officer) and a DSP-rank officer--Devender Singh.

Singh was the investigating officer in the Moin Qureshi case (in which Sana was involved) and was accused of fabricating Sana's statement to save Asthana and implicate Verma.

Manoj Prasad strongly denied that he knows Rakesh Asthana.

Asthana had petitioned the Delhi High Court seeking quashing of the FIR accusing the CBI Director Alok Verma of implicating him in a false and fabricated case.