Supreme Court grants 'conditional' bail to TMC leader Anubrata Mondal in cattle smuggling case registered by CBI

According to reports, a Supreme Court Bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and Satish Chandra Sharma granted the bail to Anubrata Mondal subject to conditions like surrender of passport.

The court also directed Mondal that he will cooperate during the trial and not influence witnesses.

The apex court granted him bail while hearing an appeal filed by Anubrata Mondal, who is currently present in judicial custody in Delhi's Tihar Jail, challenging the Calcutta High Court's refusal to grant him bail.

Earlier on August 11, 2022, CBI arrested Anubrata Mondal in connection with a case filed against him for allegedly smuggling cattle to Bangladesh by bribing Border Security Force (BSF) personnel, and he has been behind the bars since then.

Fifty-seven days after his arrest, a charge sheet was filed against Mondal on August 11, 2022, where he was charged under Section 420 (Cheating) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and several sections of The Prevention of Corruption Act.

In September last year, the Supreme Court had sought the response of the CBI in the matter.

During the hearing of the case in December last year, the apex court had asked the CBI to hand over a copy of the chargesheet in the case to Mondal.

However, Anubrata Mondal will remain in Tihar Jail, even after getting bail, as he has not been granted bail in the case filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).