Kollam: Former Devaswom Commissioner and Sabarimala President N Vasu, currently in prison in connection with the Sabarimala gold theft case, has been granted bail by the Kollam Vigilance Court.

Vasu is the fifth accused to secure natural bail in the case after the Special Investigation Team (SIT) failed to file a chargesheet in the high-profile case. 

He is the third accused in the door panel case, and his release follows the legal provision allowing bail when a chargesheet is not filed within 90 days. The court’s order came after a hearing on Vasu’s bail application was concluded.

Meanwhile, the remand of other accused in the case, Pankaj Bhandari, Govardhan and K S Baiju, has been extended by 14 days. Earlier, the first accused, Unnikrishnan Potti, along with other co-accused, had also been granted natural bail under similar circumstances.