Bombay HC grants interim bail to 'Gharkul' scam convict Suresh Jain

The Bombay High Court on Wednesday granted interim bail to former Maharashtra minister Suresh Jain, one of the convicts in the 29-crore 'Gharkul' housing scam, on medical grounds. In August, a sessions court in Maharashtra's Dhule district had found Jain guilty of corruption and sentenced him to seven years in prison.

A division bench of justices R V More and M S Karnik on Wednesday granted bail to the former Shiv Sena leader for a period of three months on a surety of Rs 5 lakh. Jain, who is presently out on furlough, had approached the high court earlier this month seeking bail on medical grounds.

Besides Jain, the sessions court had convicted 47 others, including another former state minister Gulabrao Deokar, ex-municipal councillors and officials, for irregularities in the 'Gharkul' housing project. Jain had favoured a builder who got the contract to build houses under the 'Gharkul' scheme and indulged in irregularities to the tune of Rs 29 crore.

Of the 5,000 houses to be built on the outskirts of Jalgaon city in north Maharashtra, only 1,500 were completed. Former Jalgaon municipal commissioner Pravin Gedam had registered a complaint in this regard in 2006.

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