Sanjay Badaya, arrested in the Jal Jeevan Mission scam, has been granted bail by the Supreme Court, which cited the extensive evidence and ongoing investigation as reasons. The Enforcement Directorate’s objections were noted, but Badaya, linked to former minister Mahesh Joshi, is not the primary accused in the ongoing Rs 900 crore corruption case.
New Delhi: Sanjay Badaya, arrested in the Jal Jeevan Mission scam case of Rajasthan, has been granted bail by the Supreme Court. A bench led by Justice BR Gavai highlighted key reasons for the decision, stating,
“There is no possibility of tampering with all the documentary evidence seized by the ED. Charges have not been framed yet, 50 witnesses are to be questioned, and the evidence is of 8000 pages. A speedy hearing is a distant dream. We allow the application.”
The Enforcement Directorate (ED), represented by Zoheb Hussain, opposed the bail, alleging that Rs 1.05 crore was transferred into the account of Sanjay Badaya’s father. The court countered this argument, noting that other accused in the case have already been granted bail and that Badaya is not the primary accused.
Badaya is considered a close associate of former Rajasthan Water Supply Minister Mahesh Joshi. The ED alleges that Badaya acted as a bridge between PHED (Public Health Engineering Department) officials and private contractors, facilitating bribes on behalf of officials. Investigators believe Badaya had significant influence over PHED operations, including interference in official files.
During the bail hearing, Badaya’s lawyer argued that his client cannot be implicated solely based on statements given by another individual. The lawyer also noted the lack of concrete evidence linking Mahesh Mittal’s alleged amount to Badaya, emphasizing that the prosecution has no substantial basis for its claims.
The Jal Jeevan Mission scam involves allegations of a Rs 900 crore corruption scheme, with the ED, CBI, and ACB investigating the case. In September 2023, ED raids in Jaipur and Alwar uncovered Rs 2.5 lakh cash, a 1 kg gold brick, and property documents worth crores. These raids targeted properties linked to Mahesh Mittal, property dealer Sanjay Badaya, and several government officials, including Kalyan Singh Kaviya, Maya Lal Saini, and Tehsildar Suresh Sharma.
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