The Supreme Court granted bail to former RG Kar principal Sandip Ghosh in a financial irregularities case, citing prolonged custody and slow trial progress.
Only seven of the 147 witnesses have been examined, with Ghosh having spent more than two years in custody.
West Bengal BJP chief Samik Bhattacharya said the bail order did not establish Ghosh’s innocence or rule out his alleged involvement.
The Supreme Court has granted bail to former RG Kar Medical College and Hospital principal Sandip Ghosh in a case relating to alleged financial irregularities at the Kolkata-based institution and the manipulation of merit scores to accommodate undeserving candidates.
A bench of Justices MM Sundresh and PB Varale allowed Ghosh's appeal against a February 23, 2026, order of the Calcutta High Court rejecting his bail plea. The bench took note of the period he had spent in custody and the slow progress of the trial, observing that only seven of the 147 witnesses had been examined so far.
The court said Ghosh had undergone incarceration for more than two years and set aside the High Court's order, granting him bail on terms and conditions to be imposed by the trial court.
"In such view of the matter, considering the period of incarceration and also the stage of the trial, we are inclined to set aside the impugned order passed by the High Court and allow this appeal," the bench said in its order passed on Thursday.
The court added that the terms and conditions of bail would be determined by the concerned trial court.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which probed the case, named Ghosh in its chargesheet on August 24, 2024. He faces allegations of criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust, cheating, forgery and using forged documents under Sections 120B, 409, 420, 468 and 471 of the Indian Penal Code, along with offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The allegations concern financial irregularities at the college and the alleged manipulation of merit scores to favour candidates who were not deserving of admission or appointment.
Ghosh had approached the Supreme Court after a special CBI court rejected his bail applications on January 7, 2025, followed by the Calcutta High Court's dismissal of his plea on February 23, 2026.
BJP Chief Says Bail Does Not Establish Innocence
Reacting to the Supreme Court's decision, West Bengal BJP president Samik Bhattacharya said the grant of bail did not establish Ghosh's innocence or rule out his alleged involvement in the case.
Acknowledging the disappointment among those associated with the 'Abhaya' movement, which emerged following the rape and murder of a doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in August 2024, Bhattacharya said legal proceedings could not be guided by emotions.
"Those associated with the 'Abhaya' movement are getting disheartened. But the law does not run on emotion. Bail is also a legal right of a person," he said.
He maintained that the court's decision should not be interpreted as a finding that Ghosh was innocent or had no connection with the alleged offences. Bhattacharya also suggested that legal and technical considerations might have influenced the decision.
The BJP leader's remarks came amid continuing public attention on the RG Kar case, which triggered widespread protests across West Bengal and other parts of the country following the doctor's death on August 9, 2024.
Ghosh Remained In Custody In Corruption Case
Ghosh had earlier secured bail in the rape-and-murder case after a Sealdah court granted him relief in December 2024. The relief followed the CBI's failure to file a chargesheet within the mandatory 90-day period.
However, he continued to remain in custody in the separate case concerning alleged financial irregularities at the medical college.
The West Bengal government sanctioned his prosecution in the corruption case on May 18, 2026.
The Supreme Court's latest order concerns the financial irregularities case. The grant of bail does not amount to an acquittal, nor does it settle the allegations against Ghosh, which remain subject to the trial.
With only seven of the 147 witnesses examined, the Supreme Court's order brings renewed focus on the pace of proceedings in the case, even as the allegations against the former principal remain to be adjudicated.
