SRINAGAR: A court here has granted interim bail to former Jammu and Kashmir Bank chairman Parvez Ahmad Nengroo in two cases, including the one of illegal allotment of tenders for housekeeping that led to a loss of crores of rupees to the financial institution.In an order on Saturday, special anti-corruption judge C L Bavoria granted the relief to Nengroo.The court said the petitioner deserves concession of bail after considering all the facts and circumstances, including duration of custody of the petitioner (accused) and directions of higher courts for the release of prisoner in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, the status of the investigation and the objections raised by the prosecution.The court said “the accused /petitioner is admitted to interim bail in both the cases till 31 May 2021” on furnishing of bail bonds of Rs one lakh in each of the FIRs and “personal bonds of like amount with one surety”.The court also imposed conditions on the accused that he shall appear before the investigating officer during the interim bail as and when called.The other conditions imposed include that the accused shall not directly or indirectly make any inducement, threat or promise to any person acquainted with the facts of the case, and shall not leave the jurisdiction of the court without prior permission.The court also ordered that the prosecution shall be at liberty to approach the court for cancellation of the bail of the accused in case he fails to fulfil the conditions as laid by the court.Nengroo was arrested by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in April this year in connection with the case of illegal allotment of tenders for housekeeping that led to a loss of crores of rupees to the bank.The ACB had registered a case in October last year against a private firm and three former bank officials, including Nengroo who was removed from the post in June 2019, five months before the end of his term, for allegedly causing a Rs 6.92-crore loss to the bank by not following tendering rules.In December 2019, the ACB had filed a charge-sheet against Nengroo and 22 others in another case related to illegal appointments in the bank. The accused also included another former bank chairman, Sheikh Mushtaq.The government had ordered Nengroo”s dismissal and replaced him with an interim chairman, R K Chibber who was executive president of the financial institution.Chibber got the seventh extension for six months on March 31, making him the longest-serving chief executive.The government, which owns a majority stake in the bank, has said the decision to remove Ahmad was part of long-term measures for improving the functioning of the bank in accordance with RBI guidelines.
