SC grants interim bail to ED officer arrested in Tamil Nadu in bribery case

New Delhi, Mar 20 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Wednesday granted interim bail to Enforcement Directorate (ED) officer Ankit Tiwari who was arrested by the Tamil Nadu Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) for alleged bribery.

While granting him the relief, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and K V Viswanathan said he shall not directly or indirectly contact or influence the witnesses in the case.

The bench also directed that he shall not leave Tamil Nadu without the prior permission of the apex court and surrender his passport.

The top court passed the order while hearing a petition by Tiwari against the Madras High Court’s refusal to grant him bail.

“The petitioner is directed to be released on interim bail,” the bench said, adding it will be subject to his furnishing bail bonds to the satisfaction of the trial court concerned.

The bench said in addition to the conditions as may be imposed by the trial court, the petitioner shall not make any attempt to tamper with evidence.

A separate petition filed by the ED seeking transfer of the probe in the case against Tiwari to the CBI also came up for hearing before the top court.

The bench asked the ED to file a rejoinder within two weeks in the matter and posted it for hearing on April 18.

While hearing the ED’s plea in January, the apex court had mulled over formulating a fair and transparent pan-India mechanism for investigation of cases involving officials of the central probe agencies and state governments to eliminate apprehensions about political vendetta thwarting probes.

Ten states, including Tamil Nadu, Telangana, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Punjab, Jharkhand, Kerala, Mizoram, Meghalaya and Chhattisgarh have withdrawn general consent to the CBI to investigate cases in their respective jurisdictions.

According to Section 6 of the Delhi Special Police Establishment (DSPE) Act, 1946, under which the CBI functions, the federal agency needs consent of state governments to conduct investigations in their jurisdiction.

Tiwari, an officer posted in the sub-zonal office of the ED in Madurai, was claimed to have been arrested while receiving a bribe of Rs 20 lakh from a Tamil Nadu government official on December 1, 2023.

Following his arrest, the ED filed a complaint with Tamil Nadu police chief Shankar Jiwal accusing the state vigilance officers of trespassing on its zonal office in Madurai and stealing case records.

The DVAC, on the other hand, claimed “incriminating documents” were seized during the search.

The state’s ruling DMK and other major opposition parties have often accused the Centre’s ruling BJP of using its investigative agencies to harass its rivals.

While hearing the ED’s plea for transfer of the case against Tiwari to the CBI, the apex court had sought a response from the Tamil Nadu government.

The ED had told the top court that it wanted a fair and proper investigation in the case.

The ED, in its plea, has also sought a direction to the Tamil Nadu government to appoint a nodal officer for sharing with it all FIRs registered in the state as regards scheduled offences under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).