Day after obtaining SC bail in liquor 'scam', Cong MLA Lakhma walks out of jail

Lakhma was first arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on January 15, 2025, in connection with a money laundering probe related to the alleged multi-crore scam and was in jail under judicial custody since then. 

On Tuesday, the apex court granted him interim bail in cases registered separately by the ED and the state's Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB)/Economic Offences Wing (EOW). While granting bail, the SC imposed several conditions, including directing Lakhma to reside outside Chhattisgarh and permitting him to enter the state only to attend court hearings. 

The SC did not allow the submissions that the accused, being an MLA, be permitted to take part in assembly proceedings. 

A large number of Congress leaders and workers, including MLAs Vikram Mandavi and Savitri Mandavi and former legislator Vikas Upadhyay, gathered outside the jail to receive him, raising slogans in his support. 

Lakhma's wife and son were also there. Lakhma, a prominent tribal leader of the Congress from the Bastar region, garlanded a statue of Mahatma Gandhi inside the jail premises. 

A troupe also performed a tribal dance outside the jail to welcome him. -- PTI