The Supreme Court on Friday granted bail to former Trinamool Congress leader Kuntal Ghosh in a case filed against him by the CBI for alleged corruption in school recruitment.

Ghosh is currently facing various charges under the IPC and Sections 7, 7-A and 8 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, in the “cash-for-jobs” scam.

He was earlier granted bail by Calcutta High Court in a parallel case registered by the Enforcement Directorate under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan said it was not likely that the trial would be completed in the foreseeable near future in the case wherein Ghosh had been in custody for the past 19 months.

Ghosh is accused of creating a parallel website similar to the West Bengal Primary Education Board where fake results of undeserving candidates seeking jobs were posted and crores of rupees were collected from them.

The bench asked the CBI counsel about the time it needed to complete the investigation and was informed that the probe agency was planning to file a supplementary chargesheet in December as it had to examine the witnesses defrauded by the accused.

The bench said owing to the nature of the allegations and the nature of evidence required to be collected by the CBI, it was natural for the agency to take time and conclude the case by filing the chargesheet, paving the way for the trial.

“In the given circumstances, we are of the view that the retention of the petitioner in custody for an indefinite period will not be in conformity with the well-settled principles of criminal jurisprudence,” the apex court said.

The top court directed Ghosh to not leave Bengal without the prior permission of the court or the investigation agency. It also directed Ghosh not to hold any public posts or make statements in the media about the merit of the investigation.

Ghosh has also been directed not to influence witnesses or tamper with the evidence in the case. He has to provide his mobile number to the investigating officer as well as to the trial court. During the pendency of the proceedings, Ghosh will not be appointed or hold any public office.