Ramalinga Raju, others accused in Satyam Computers case granted bail

Hyderabad: B. Ramalinga Raju and nine others accused in the multi-crore Satyam Computers case were granted bail on Monday by the eighth metropolitan sessions judge court-cum-special court for economic offences.

Suspending the sentence of Raju and his brother, B. Rama Raju, former managing director of the firm, special judge M. Laxman asked the two to furnish personal bonds of Rs 1 lakh each and two sureties of a like sum. “They shall also pay one-tenth of the fine amount within a period of four weeks from the date of release on bail before the primary court, failing which they must undergo default sentence,” the judge said in the order.

Ramalinga Raju, former chairman of Satyam Computers, and nine others, who were lodged in Cherlapally Central Prison, had filed appeals and applications with the court last week, challenging their conviction, besides the sentences (imprisonment and fines) imposed by the additional chief metropolitan magistrate court.

On April 9 this year, the ACMM court, which had tried the Satyam corporate fraud case probed by Central Bureau of Investigation, had sentenced Ramalinga Raju and the others to seven years’ rigorous imprisonment for criminal conspiracy and cheating, among other offences.

It had also imposed a Rs 5.35-crore fine on Ramalinga Raju and Rama Raju while the others were fined Rs 25 lakh each. Apart from the Rajus, the court on Monday asked the eight other accused to furnish personal bonds of Rs 50,000 each and two sureties of the same amount each. Ramalinga Raju and the others were asked to give an undertaking to cooperate with the early disposal of the appeals without taking undue adjournments.