Arrested Gujarat police officer freed on bail

GANDHINAGAR - Former Ahmedabad deputy commissioner of police Abhay Chudasama, behind bars in connection with the alleged Sohrabuddin Sheikh staged shootout, was Thursday granted three months bail to undergo surgery at a private hospital.

The Central Bureau of Investigation, which arrested him, had earlier opposed the interim bail plea in the court of the CBI judge G.K. Upadhayay on the grounds that Chudasama had tried to monitor their investigation in an unauthorised manner and also attempted to influence the key witnesses in the case.

It contended that investigations into the case were at a crucial stage and granting interim bail would hamper the probe.

According to Chudasama’s application before the court, he had met with an accident in 1994 and had undergone a hip replacement surgery but medical reverses had necessitated surgical intervention again in 2000. He has since been advised to undergo hip replacement surgery again.

Accepting his plea, the CBI court granted him 12 weeks for undergoing the surgery in a private hospital and for rest and recuperation.