NEW DELHI, Oct 24 (IANS): Observing that his health condition was "very critical", the Delhi High Court Monday granted bail to Rajya Sabha member and former Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Amar Singh, arrested in the 2008 cash-for-votes scandal in parliament.
Justice Suresh Kait granted bail to Amar Singh in view of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) report on his health condition.
"Keeping the medical reports of the petitioner (Amar Singh) into view, it seems to me that the health condition of the petitioner is very critical. Even the doctor had advised him not to go in a crowded area and remain in a very hygienic condition to avoid infection. Obviously, the jail is not such a place where the condition as required could be made available," the judge observed in his 23-page order.
The court has asked Amar Singh, who underwent a renal transplant in September 2009 and intestinal surgery 10 years ago, to furnish surety and personal bonds of Rs.50 lakh each.
He has been asked to submit his passport to the court and not to try to influence any of the witnesses in the case.
Regular bail entitles Amar Singh to stay out of jail throughout the hearing of the case in court.
The ruling came after the Delhi Police submitted before the court the AIIMS report which says the MP's condition was critical and he needed constant monitoring.
Additional Solicitor General Mohan Parasaran told the court that Amar Singh's condition was no doubt critical. The reports were authentic as they came from the prestigious AIIMS and therefore bail was not opposed.
He argued that there was sufficient evidence against Amar Singh and the chargesheet had already been filed so there was no need for custodial interrogation. The only apprehension, he said, was that the MP might tamper with evidence or influence the witness after coming out of custody.
Amar Singh, 55, continues to be treated at the AIIMS where he was admitted Sep 12. He was held Sep 6 for his alleged involvement in an attempt to bribe MPs ahead of the July 2008 parliament trust vote.
He was chargesheeted under section 12 of the Prevention of Corruption Act and section 120 B (Conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code.
In a related development, the special trial court hearing the cash-for-votes case also asked police to include SP MP Rewati Raman Singh as an accused in the case, saying there was sufficient material to show he was part of the criminal conspiracy.
On July 22, 2008, then Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs Faggan Singh Kulaste, Mahavir Bhagora and Ashok Argal waved wads of currency notes in the Lok Sabha ahead of a trust vote, alleging they were given the money to vote in favour of the Manmohan Singh government.
After a Supreme Court rap for shoddy probe, Delhi Police July 17 made their first arrest in the case, taking Amar Singh's secretary Sanjeev Saxena into custody.
Three days later, middleman Suhail Hindustani was arrested and Sep 6 Kulaste and Bhagora were taken into custody.
BJP leader L.K. Advani's former aide Sudheendra Kulkarni was the sixth person to be arrested in the case when he appeared before the court Sep 27.
A second supplementary chargesheet filed Oct 3 made Argal, a BJP MP from Bhind in Madhya Pradesh, an accused in the case.
