JBT scam: HC extends interim bail of two convicts

NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court on Friday extended till November 14 the interim bail of former IAS officer Sanjiv Kumar and Om Prakash Chautala's former Officer on Special Duty (OSD) Vidya Dhar who have been sentenced to 10 years in prison in the Junior Basic Teachers (JBT) recruitment scam case.
A special bench of Justice Siddharth Mridul extended their bail on medical ground.
Former Haryana chief minister and Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) chief Om Prakash Chautala had on October 11 surrendered at Tihar jail. The high court had on October 10 canceled his interim bail and had asked him to surrender in 24 hours, after CBI had moved the court alleging that Chautala had flouted his bail conditions.
CBI in its plea had said Chautala was busy campaigning for his party for Haryana Assembly elections despite being out on bail on medical grounds.
The former chief minister, who has been convicted and sentenced to 10 years jail term in the JBT recruitment scam case, had on September 26 volunteered to surrender after which the court had fixed October 17 as the date for his surrender.
But the court on October 10 advanced that date and gave him 24 hours to surrender after he was found campaigning for his party. On July 11, the high court had reserved its verdict on the appeals of 55 convicts, including Chautala and his son Ajay, in the case.
On January 22, 2013, a special CBI court had convicted and sentenced the Chautalas and eight others to 10-year jail term each for illegally recruiting 3,206 junior teachers in 2000. Among other convicts, 44 were sentenced to four years in jail and one to five-year jail term.
All of them were held guilty of cheating, forgery, using fake documents as genuine, conspiracy under IPC and of abusing their official position under Prevention of Corruption Act. pti