Gujarat HC rejects Teesta's plea for defreezing bank accounts

The Gujarat High Court has rejected the plea of Teesta Setalvad and her husband Javed Anand for defreezing of their personal bank accounts and to allow their two NGOs to operate.

Upholding the verdict of a lower court with this regard to an embezzlement case, the high court observed that the probe was at a serious stage.

Justice G.R. Udhvani in his order said the execution of a bond was not a justifiable solution when the investigation of the Gulberg Society embezzlement case was at a serious stage. According to the court, it was premature to consider as to whether the accounts were to be defreezed, and therefore, there was no question of executing the bonds.

The bank accounts of Teesta Setalvad, her husband Javed Anand and their two NGOs - Sabrang Trust and Citizens for Justice and Peace were frozen by the Crime Branch of Ahemdabad Police last year.

Setalvad and others have been accused of embezzling over one and a half-crore rupees that was collected to convert the Gulberg Society, where 69 people were killed during the post-Godhra riots in 2002 into a museum in memory of the riot victims.