The Jharkhand High Court on Friday granted four-month provisional bail to sister Konsolia Bakhla, who was working with the Ranchi-based Missionaries of Charity Trust, and was in jail in connection with alleged selling of a child last year.
Bakhla, sister of Nirmal Hriday, a shelter run by Mother Teresa-founded Missionaries of Charity at Jail Road here, was arrested in July 2018 for allegedly selling a child born to a minor inmate of the shelter, to a couple, police had said.
The bench of Justice Anand Sen granted the provisional bail for four months and directed her to deposit her passport and two sureties of Rs 10,000 each.
The court will hear the case after four months.
Bakhla's counsel Chandan Kumari argued that her client should be given bail as there were no direct charges against her, and she is in jail from July 5, 2018, and sick.
Another accused, Anima Indwar, who was arrested along with Bakhlam, has already obtained bail, the lawyer said.
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The government counsel opposed the bail petition.
After hearing both the sides, the bench allowed four months provisional bail to Bakhla.
The arrests had been made on July 5, 2018, based on a complaint filed by Rupa Verma, the chairperson of Ranchi child welfare committee (CWC).
In her complaint, Verma said that a couple from Uttar Pradesh's Shone Bhadra district had approached the CWC after the shelter home allegedly took away the child they had earlier given them on May 14.
The couple told her that they had to pay Rs 1.2 lakh to Nirmal Hriday on May 1 last year to get custody of the baby boy.
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