Hyderabad:
A special court on Thursday granted bail to Y Srilakshmi, a senior Indian Administrative Service (IAS) official in Andhra Pradesh, in the illegal mining case involving Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC) of former Karnataka minister Gali Janardhana Reddy.
The CBI had presented her in the court on Thursday evening after her three-day custody ended. The investigating agency, which had arrested Srilakshmi, the family welfare commissioner, on November 28, sought her custody again but the court remanded her to judicial custody till December 12.
The court had rejected the appeal by the 1988-batch IAS officer that she be allowed to stay in the CBI office in view of her health problems.
Srilakshmi was then to Chanchalgunda women's prison, where she was lodged in barrack number nine and was allotted undertrial number 4322.
Srilakshmi, who is the fourth accused in the case, allegedly favoured OMC by granting iron ore licence as the secretary industries incharge of mines in the Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy government.
It was on Tuesday that the court had remanded her to CBI custody for three days.
The state government on Thursday suspended the official after CBI informed the government about her arrest. The CBI informed Chief Secretary Pankaj Dwivedi, who issued orders suspending her.
As per the rules, a government employee is suspended if he or she spends 48 hours in detention.
Srilakshmi, in her bail petition, blamed Sabita Indra Reddy, who is now the Home Minister. Srilakshmi says the lease was issued after obtaining the minister's approval.
The IAS officer, who is wife of an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer M. Gopalakrishna, is facing charges of criminal breach of trust by a public servant, criminal conspiracy and cheating.
Janardhana Reddy and OMC managing director B.V. Srinivasa Reddy were arrested from Bellary in Karnataka on September 5. Former mines director V.D. Rajagopal was arrested on November 13.
(With IANS inputs)