CBI Custody Extended for Colonel Bali in Rs 50 Lakh Bribery Case

The Rouse Avenue court on Monday extended the CBI remand of Colonel Himanshu Bali for five more days in connection with a Rs 50 lakh bribery case. Fresh CBI custody was also granted to Mayank Agarwal and Akshat Agarwal, who were produced in court following their arrest. The accusations assert that Colonel Bali was involved in a bribery scheme worth Rs 50 lakh from Akshat and Mayank Agarwal, defense suppliers based in Kanpur, who allegedly funneled the bribe through Chandni Chowk's hawala network.

Special Judge (CBI) Smita Garg justified extending CBI custody for Himanshu Bali and granting a five-day remand for Akshat and Mayank Agarwal, citing investigative needs. These suspects will next appear in court on May 30. Yash Gupta, another defendant, faces a bail hearing the same day while currently in judicial custody. Authorities claim Ashutosh Shukla collected the bribe, handing it to Naresh Kumar Pal on May 18; the amount was later retrieved from Yash Gupta's Noida residence by the CBI.

CBI's public prosecutor argued that Akshat and Mayank Agarwal were detained after evading capture and that their custody will help unravel their criminal methods and connections to documented and unknown cohorts. The investigation aims to determine the full spectrum of illicit favors exchanged, connect recovered funds to illegal dealings, and retrieve significant evidence in furtherance of prosecuting corruption charges against Colonel Bali, identified beneficiaries like M/s Eastern Global Limited, and their networks.

(With inputs from agencies.)