RANCHI: Advocate Rajeev Kumar was finally been granted bail by a lower court in Kolkata on Monday. Kumar was arrested by West Bengal Police from Kolkata on July 31, allegedly with Rs 50 lakh in his possession, on the charges of blackmailing a businessman after filing a PIL against him in Jharkhand High Court.
Kumar’s colleague Vijay Ranjan Sinha at Jharkhand High Court confirmed that he has been granted bail by a Special Court at Bankshall in Kolkata. Earlier, the court had rejected Kumar’s bail petition on the ground that he is an influential person and may influence the probe.
Notably, Kumar is instrumental in filing PILs seeking a probe against CM Hemant Soren for the alleged irregularities in the grant of mining leases and also on transactions of some shell companies purportedly operated by his family members and associates. Kumar is currently lodged at Alipur Jail in Bengal after being arrested by Kolkata police.
Advocate Rajeev Kumar had reportedly filed a PIL in Ranchi High Court against a Kolkata-based businessman and was asking Rs 10 crore to withdraw the PIL.
After negotiations, he allegedly settled at Rs 1 crore for which the first instalment of Rs 50 lakh was paid and he was caught red-handed with it. Later, the case was taken over by the Enforcement Directorate, which also secured police custody for Kumar by a special PMLA court of Prabhat Kumar Sharma in Ranchi.
The ED informed the court that the agency lodged an ECIR in Ranchi and Rajiv Kumar is the accused in this case. But Kumar may not be able to come out of jail very soon as Enforcement Directorate has taken over his case for investigation making him an accused person.
Now, he will be under the custody of the ED till he secures bail from the special PMLA court in Ranchi.