NEW DELHI The CBI Friday opposed the bail application of Manoj Prasad, an alleged middleman arrested in connection with bribery allegations involving the agency's Special Director Rakesh Asthana.
The agency told the special CBI judge Santosh Snehi Mann that the accused was an influential person and if granted the relief, he may tamper with the ongoing probe and flee from justice.
The court put up the application for Saturday for argument after the counsel for Prasad said he needed time to go through the CBI's reply and advance his arguments.
Prasad is currently in judicial custody. The court had on October 31 granted bail to co-accused and CBI's DSP Devender Kumar after the agency did not oppose his bail petition.
In his bail application, Prasad said he was not required for the custodial interrogation and no purpose will be served by keeping him in further custody.
The CBI had registered an FIR against Asthana and others on a written complaint of businessman Sathish Sana on October 15.
Besides Asthana, Prasad and Kumar, another middleman Somesh Prasad has also been named as an accused in the case.
The FIR had alleged that Kumar, being the IO in the case against meat exporter Moin Qureshi, was repeatedly calling the complainant to the CBI office to harass him and compel him to pay a bribe of Rs five crore for getting a clean chit in the case.
The complaint had also said that a part of the bribe was paid by Sana.