New Delhi: The Supreme Court has agreed to release the head of the Sahara conglomerate from custody, but only after the group deposits 100 billion rupees in cash and bank guarantees.
Sahara Chairman Subrata Roy was arrested on February 28 and has been held in a Delhi jail since March 4 after failing to appear at a contempt hearing in a long-running legal battle between the group and the securities regulator over the refund of billions of dollars to investors in outlawed bonds.
In its ruling on Wednesday, the Supreme Court ordered unlisted Sahara to deposit 50 billion rupees in cash with the securities regulator as well as provide bank guarantees for another 50 billion rupees.
Sahara officials did not immediately comment on the court’s ruling.
The court had asked Sahara to come up with a concrete and acceptable proposal to repay the money, while ordering its chief to be held in jail. Roy has not been charged with any crime. It had previously rejected Sahara’s proposal to give bank guarantees of 225 billion rupees within three to six months, as well as a subsequent proposal to pay a total of 174 billion rupees in six installments through July 2015.
Bureau Report
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