New Delhi: Noting that the trial will likely take time due to the high number of witnesses, Delhi High Court has granted bail to four alleged aides of Sukesh Chandrashekhar in a Rs 200 crore extortion case registered under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).Justice Prateek Jalan recently granted bail to Arun Muthu, Kamlesh Kothari, B Mohanraj, and Sudhir while listing out factors such as the number of accused (24), the number of witnesses (403), and the complexity of the case.On Muthu, the HC observed that he is not accused of directly participating in the extortion acts against the complainant or others. According to the prosecution, Muthu was involved in planning and managing funds sent by Sukesh to Leena, facilitating accounting entries, purchasing properties and luxury cars, arranging parking for these vehicles, and producing a film. The court noted similar parity in the role of other co-accused and gave them relief.Meanwhile, another bench of HC Wednesday sought Delhi Police’s stand on a petition by another close aide of Chandrasekhar, challenging the framing of charges against her in the extortion case.The trial court on June 3 framed charges against Chandrashekar, Pinky Irani and 19 others for various offences, including under MCOCA provisions. Justice Madhu Jain issued notice to police on Irani’s revision petition assailing the trial court order and granted two weeks to the investigating agency to file its response. HC also issued notice on Irani’s plea seeking a stay on the trial court proceedings and listed the matter for further hearing on Sep 10.Police opposed the petition and sought time to file a response. It said that statements of several people, including Bollywood actors Jacqueline Fernandez and Nora Fatehi, have been recorded.Chandrasekhar, who is currently in jail, is accused of cheating many people, including high-profile individuals such as former Fortis Healthcare promoter Shivinder Mohan Singh’s wife Aditi Singh. Police have alleged that Chandrasekhar and his accomplices reportedly took money from Aditi after posing as govt officials and promising to secure bail for her husband, who was in jail in a money laundering case.
