HC grants bail to five in JJM scam

Jaipur: The Rajasthan high court Thursday granted bail to five accused in the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) scam.The court observed, "Considering the facts, circumstances of the case and the custody period of the accused applicants, without commenting on the merits of the case, it appears appropriate to grant the benefit of bail to the applicants."
The ACB on Dec 18, 2025, had arrested five accused, including a PHED officer, in the alleged corruption and bribery racket linked to JJM projects. The five accused arrested were identified as Mahesh Kumar Mittal, proprietor of Ganpati Tubewell; his son Hemant Mittal; Umesh Kumar Sharma, manager and liaison officer of Shyam Tubewell; Gopal Kumawat, the then accounts officer of PHED; and Piyush Jain, son of Padam Chand Jain, proprietor of Shyam Tubewell. During the hearing, the public prosecutor opposed the pleas, arguing that the accused are employees of Shyam Tubewell Company and Ganpati Tubewell Company. The prosecution said that conversations between the accused and their firm's owner indicate their role in demanding and receiving bribe money. While acknowledging that bail to the main accused had already been granted by a coordinate bench, the prosecutor urged the court to reject these applications due to the seriousness of the allegations. Counsel for the petitioners, Sudhir Jain, submitted that the accused have been in custody since Dec 18, 2025, the chargesheet has been filed, and the trial is likely to take time. On these grounds, he sought their release on bail. The court granted bail to the five accused directed them to execute a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh and furnish two sureties of Rs 50,000 each, to the satisfaction of the trial court, for appearance on all fixed dates and whenever required. The court further ordered that they be released on bail in the present case if they are not required in any other case.