<div>Senior Trinamool Congress leader Madan Mitra, an accused in the Saradha scam, was on Friday granted bail by a city court 617 days after his arrest. The former state Cabinet minister was arrested by the CBI in December 2014 for his involvement in the multi-crore Saradha chit fund scam.<br /><br />The CBI counsel argued that Mitra should not be granted bail as he continued to wield political influence and may try to intimidate witnesses and influence the outcome of the investigation. Mitra’s counsel counter-argued that the former minister is no longer influential after losing the Assembly elections earlier this year. The court rejected the CBI’s argument and granted bail to Mitra on a personal bond of Rs 30 lakh.<br /><br />Mitra was granted conditional bail with the court ruling that his passport would be impounded and he must appear before the CBI whenever required.</div>
<div>Senior Trinamool Congress leader Madan Mitra, an accused in the Saradha scam, was on Friday granted bail by a city court 617 days after his arrest. The former state Cabinet minister was arrested by the CBI in December 2014 for his involvement in the multi-crore Saradha chit fund scam.<br /><br />The CBI counsel argued that Mitra should not be granted bail as he continued to wield political influence and may try to intimidate witnesses and influence the outcome of the investigation. Mitra’s counsel counter-argued that the former minister is no longer influential after losing the Assembly elections earlier this year. The court rejected the CBI’s argument and granted bail to Mitra on a personal bond of Rs 30 lakh.<br /><br />Mitra was granted conditional bail with the court ruling that his passport would be impounded and he must appear before the CBI whenever required.</div>
