Ph
Alleged Gupta associate Iqbal Sharma was on Wednesday granted R500 000 bail by the Bloemfontein High Court.
Sharma had previously brought an application for appeal in the Bloemfontein High Court after he was denied bail in the lower court by the magistrate, Estelle de Lange, on 8 June.
Handing down judgment virtually on Wednesday afternoon, Judge Joseph Mhlambi, said: “Pending the outcome of the trial, the appellant is granted bail in the amount of R500 000.”
The granting of bail comes with stringent conditions, including, among other things, that Sharma pledge and hand over his retirement annuity policy to the State within 72 hours of his release.
Sharma’s counsel argued that their client was not a flight risk because he had travelled extensively across the globe and still returned to South Africa.
The State, however, previously argued that the application should be turned down as Sharma “has no emotional attachment to South Africa”.
De Lange said during her judgment that she found there was a strong case against the accused – and that there was a likelihood the accused would flee the country.
