Satyendar Jain gets bail in STP case; Delhi court flags 27-month delay in arrest after FIR, insufficient evidence

A city court on Thursday granted bail to senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and former Water Minister Satyendar Jain, who was arrested on August 18 in a case involving alleged irregularities in the tendering process for sewage treatment plants (STPs) in Delhi, citing an “extraordinary delay of 27 months” between the FIR and his arrest.

AAP welcomed the development and said the merit of the case could be gauged from the fact that Mr. Jain secured bail within just 10 days of arrest. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) hit back, saying bail could not be equated with acquittal.

‘Not enough to deny bail’

Allowing Mr. Jain’s bail plea, Special Judge Dig Vinay Singh of the Rouse Avenue Courts noted that the material evidence furnished by the prosecution till now is “prima facie insufficient to deny the applicant bail”.

He said the “unexplained and extraordinary delay of 27 months” between the registration of the FIR (April 11, 2024) and the AAP leader’s arrest indicates that the “investigating agency did not consider his physical custody necessary for over two years”.

The judge added that the prosecution had failed to identify any “new or sudden” circumstance that warranted the arrest after the prolonged gap. “When an investigating agency has conducted its investigation for years without arresting an accused, and the accused has joined the investigation process, a sudden arrest at the tail end of the investigation, without strong reasons and without a change in circumstances, tends to invite criticism that it is arbitrary,” the court said.

It noted that Mr. Jain is available for further investigation, interrogation and trial, and is not a flight risk.

The court remarked that there is “no possibility of tampering with the evidence or of influencing/intimidating the witnesses. He is no longer a Minister or an MLA” and granted him bail.

The case relates to the awarding of a contract to Euroteck Environmental Private Limited during Mr. Jain’s tenure as Water Minister.

Case background

According to the Anti Corruption Branch (ACB), which arrested him based on a complaint by the Delhi government’s Directorate of Vigilance, the tender contained restrictive technical specifications and conditions that allegedly favoured Euroteck Environmental, limiting competition and giving the private entity an undue advantage.

The ACB alleged that Mr. Jain increased the planned capacity of the Rohini STP from 15 million gallons per day (MGD) to 30 MGD without first obtaining a technical feasibility assessment. The alleged decision led to an estimated increase of ₹123 crore in project costs, the ACB claimed.

‘Wasn’t interrogated’

In a post on X, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal wrote: “Satyendar Jain got bail on Thursday. Why was he arrested? No one understands. In any case, a person is sent to custody to be interrogated. Police custody is sought for this. After the police custody is over, the person goes to judicial custody.”

He said Mr. Jain was not sent to police custody in this case. “No interrogation was conducted. He was sent straight to judicial custody. The case against him was so weak that he got bail in just 10 days.” Delhi AAP chief Saurabh Bharadwaj stated on social media: “BJP’s ‘Operation Punjab’ fails.”

Mr. Jain serves as the party’s Punjab co-in charge.

Delhi BJP president Harsh Malhotra said, “The grant of bail does not mean acquittal. Jain will face trial and the investigating agency’s case is strong enough to ensure that Jain and others involved are convicted.”