New Delhi, Oct 15 (IANS): A court here on Thursday granted interim bail for 15 days to Mahmood Farooqui, co-director of Bollywood film 'Peepli Live', who is facing trial on the charge of raping an American woman.

Additional Sessions Judge Sanjiv Jain allowed Mahmood Farooqui's plea for interim bail on the ground of his father's illness.

The court asked him to furnish a personal bond of Rs.1 lakh and one surety of the like amount.

The court directed him not to leave the country without court permission.

Farooqui, who was in judicial custody since June 20, in his application said his father was suffering from bleeding haemorrhoids and had not fully recovered from a paralytic stroke.

In his interim bail application, he said all public witnesses had been examined and there was no threat to the victim or any witness.

The Delhi Police accused Farooqui of raping a 35-year-old American pursuing a PhD from Columbia University and who was in India for research.