The Supreme Court has extended till August 3 the parole granted to Sahara chief Subrata Roy on humanitarian grounds following the death of his mother, with a strict condition that he will have to deposit the balance of ₹300 crore, out of the ₹500 crore promised by him. “You have to deposit the balance ₹300 crore. Either you pay or go back to jail,” a Bench headed by Chief Justice TS Thakur said while reminding him of the May 11 order when he was given a breather for two months to enable him to deposit ₹200 crore with market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Roy, sought time till the year-end to deposit ₹300 crore, but the Bench, which also comprised Justices AR Dave and AK Sikri, said, “We have already given you a long rope.”

It also drew his attention to the history of the case, which led to the incarceration of the Sahara chief from March 4, 2014 to May 6, 2016. While Sibal was citing difficulties in selling and alienating the properties, the Bench said: “Why don’t we appoint a receiver and entrust him (with) all properties?”

Besides extension of Roy’s parole, the Sahara Group also got much-needed relief on another count, with the apex court lifting its embargo under which it had permitted the sale of only 19 properties, which included mortgage of the 600-acre Aamby Valley in Mumbai and three overseas hotels — Grosvenor House Hotel in London, the New York Plaza and Dream New York hotels.

The Bench allowed the Group to go ahead with the sale and alienation of other properties to raise ₹5,000 crore as bank guarantee that the Group is required to deposit in addition to the ₹5,000 crore to secure bail for Roy.

It also allowed the Group to sell the properties at 90 per cent of the circle rate.

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