Karnataka HC grants bail to former commissioner of MUDA G.T. Dinesh Kumar in money laundering case

Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription The View From India Looking at World Affairs from the Indian perspective. First Day First Show News and reviews from the world of cinema and streaming. Today's Cache Your download of the top 5 technology stories of the day. Data Point Decoding the headlines with facts, figures, and numbers Health Matters Ramya Kannan writes to you on getting to good health, and staying there The Hindu On Books Books of the week, reviews, excerpts, new titles and features. A view of the High Court of Karnataka. | Photo Credit: File photo The High Court of Karnataka on Wednesday granted bail to G.T. Dinesh Kumar, former commissioner of Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA), in a case registered against him by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, in connection with the MUDA scam. Justice M. Nagaprasanna ordered Mr. Kumar’s release on bail, holding that the changed circumstances, compared to earlier decisions denying him bail, and his prolonged pre-trial detention made out a case for the grant of bail, as he has been in judicial custody since his arrest in September 2025. In its earlier order denying him bail in January, the court had granted him liberty to approach it again if the trial did not progress within three months or if changed circumstances arose. The court has now noted significant changed circumstances, including the filing of the chargesheet in the predicate offence in March; the filing of a supplementary prosecution complaint by the ED against three other accused in March 2026 without arresting them; and the non-commencement of trial. The court also noted that the case involves over 12,000 pages of documents filed with the chargesheet and numerous witnesses, with no likelihood of an early conclusion of the trial. The petitioner has been directed to execute a personal bond of ₹5 lakh with two solvent sureties, appear before the jurisdictional trial court on all hearing dates, and refrain from tampering with evidence or influencing witnesses.