New Delhi: A Delhi court on Wednesday granted bail to six secretaries, who were part of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) panel which granted approval to INX Media, in a corruption case being probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Special CBI judge Ajay Kumar Kuhar granted them bail on a bond of Rs 2 lakh and directed them not to leave the country without taking prior permission. They have also been asked not to tamper with the evidence.
Senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram and his son are already out on bail in the case.
The six bureaucrats are – Ajeet Kumar Dungdung, then section officer of FIPB unit, Ministry of Finance; Rabindra Prasad, then undersecretary FIPB unit, Ministry of Finance; Pradeep Kumar Bagga, then OSD, Department of Economic Affairs, Finance Ministry; Prabodh Saxena, Director, FIPB Unit, Finance Ministry; Anup K Pujari, then Joint Secretary (Foreign Trade) Department of Economic Affairs; and Sindhushree Khullar, then Additional Secretary Department of Economic Affairs.
The CBI had filed the chargesheet against 14 accused — P. Chidambaram, his son Karti Chidambaram, his accountant S. Bhaskaran, former INX Media director Peter Mukerjea, INX Media, INX News, Chess Management Services, ASCPL and these six bureaucrats.
The accused have been charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including for criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery and for taking gratification and criminal misconduct under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Last August, P. Chidambaram was arrested by the CBI for alleged irregularities in the Rs 305 crore graft case over FIPB clearance to INX Media in 2007 when he was the Union Finance Minister. He was granted bail in December.