New Delhi, Apr 15 (UNI) The Supreme Court on Tuesday granted bail to former IAS officer Anil Tuteja in a money laundering case linked to the alleged Chhattisgarh liquor scam, noting the absence of prior sanction under Section 197 CrPC (now Section 218 BNSS) before the cognizance order was passed.
A bench comprising Justice Abhay S. Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan observed that the Chhattisgarh High Court, in an order dated April 2, 2025, had already set aside the Special Court’s cognizance order on this very ground, and no challenge to that order had been filed so far. “As of today, there is no order taking cognizance,” the Court noted.
The bench highlighted that Tuteja was arrested on April 21, 2024, and had been in custody for nearly a year. Over 20 accused have been named in the case, with 30+ prosecution witnesses cited.