Ousted secretary Deshmukh gets bail in SIS funds bungling case

Pune: The court of judicial magistrate first class Anmol Pandey on Saturday granted bail to Milind Deshmukh , the ousted secretary of the Servants of India Society (SIS), in the alleged misappropriation of funds amounting to Rs1.42 crore at the Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics (GIPE), an affiliated unit of SIS.

The court ordered Deshmukh's release upon furnishing personal and surety bonds of Rs50,000. The magistrate dictated and pronounced the operative part of the bail order in the open court in the presence of Deshmukh's lawyers and his family members. A full text of the order would be released next week.

Defence lawyer Ujjwala Pawar told TOI, "We complied with the bail condition by filing a temporary personal bond after seeking permission from the court. We will deposit cash security of Rs50,000 before the court on Monday. My client, Deshmukh, will be released from the Yerawada prison on Sunday."

Pawar, while arguing for Deshmukh's bail before the court, questioned his arrest before a forensic audit could be generated. She cited the GIPE audit reports of 2021-22, 2022-23 and 2023-24 to claim that there was no misappropriation in the transfer of Rs1.02 crore to the Nagpur district collector (to convert a land parcel held by the SIS from leasehold to freehold land) and Rs40 lakh to meet the allied expenses.

She argued that the joint charity commissioner accepted and approved the GIPE audit reports as no irregularities were discovered in the transfer of Rs1.42 crore funds. The case was of civil dispute and based on documentary evidence.

The state prosecution opposed Deshmukh's bail plea on the grounds that there was enough evidence to show his involvement in the alleged misappropriation case.