New Delhi, May 1 (IANS): In a relief to corporate lobbyist Deepak Talwar, a Delhi court on Friday granted him bail in a money laundering case.

Special Judge Ajay Kumar Kuhar of Rouse Avenue Court released him on bail on the condition that he will not try to influence case witnesses, hamper investigations and cooperate in the probe.

Talwar had sought bail on the grounds that no purpose will be served by keeping him in custody. He pleaded that the probe was already over and that there was no chance that the investigation could be hampered.

The accused added that the case evidence was documentary in nature and was already with by the probe agency.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED), however, told the court that if the accused is granted bail, he may flee from justice. The agency added that he was absconding prior to his arrest and was brought back from Dubai.

The ED had, on December 4, 2017, registered a case against NGO Advantage India, allegedly controlled by accused Deepak Talwar, on charge of violation of Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act rules and had begun investigation to trace the trail of proceeds of crime.

The agency alleged that the foreign contributions obtained by the NGO in 2012-13 and 2015-2016 were "not utilized for the mandated purposes". Rs 90.72 crore was reportedly received from MBDA England (leading European missile manufacturer) and Airbus France under the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) grant process.

According to ED investigation, Advantage India allegedly hatched a criminal conspiracy to divert funds for non-mandated purposes, by booking bogus expenditure in books of account on the basis of forged documents.