Satyam's Raju moves Supreme Court for bail

After an incarceration of more than a year in the Rs7,100-crore Satyam financial scam, B Ramalinga Raju the key accused, on Thursday moved the Supreme Court seeking bail, saying the CBI had completed its investigation and had filed a chargesheet.

In his appeal challenging a recent decision of the Andhra Pradesh High Court rejecting his bail plea, he contended that once the probe was completed and chargesheet filed, there could be no room for apprehension about tampering with evidence.

In addition to legal grounds, Raju said he was in urgent need of specialised medical help for his serious cardiac and other health problems and promised to abide by all conditions the apex court demed fit to impose on him for ordering his released from prison on bail.

According to analysts, Raju's move to approach the apex court could have been prompted by the SC's recent decision to grant bil to T Srinivas, Satyam's auditor on the ground that the bulky chargesheet running into more than 55,000 pages and the probe under progress could lead to a long-drawn trial process.

Raju also contends that his ailments and incarceration were hampering his ability to prepare an effective defence against a bulky chargesheet and voluminous documents annexed to it.

During the hearing of Srinivas' bail plea, CBI had sought to defer the hearing for three months claiming that by the time the agency would come to know the status of letters rogatory sent to US, UK, Belgium, Singapore, Mauritius and British Virgin Islands seeking the authorities' assistance for assistance on Satyam related activities there.