The Surat District Court on Friday granted bail to Vikas Singh Rajput, one of the accused arrested in connection with the Rs 50 lakh robbery at a State Bank of India (SBI) branch in Varachha in April.
What Happened at the SBI Branch?
The robbery took place on April 27. A gang of five to six robbers entered the SBI branch in Varachha. They held six bank employees and customers at gunpoint and fled with around Rs 50 lakh in cash.
The mastermind, Kundan Kumar, orchestrated the heist from a prison in Bihar using encrypted messaging apps. Multiple suspects have been arrested, and police investigations are ongoing.
The bank had no security guard present at the time, and the robbers deliberately cut the alarm lines. A van from a cash management company was stationed right outside, but its gunman was unaware the robbery was occurring.
Investigations revealed that notorious gangster Kundan Bhagat masterminded the operation from Beur Jail in Patna, Bihar. He had members of his gang conduct surveillance on at least 10 bank branches in Surat for over two weeks before executing the plan.
SBI’s in-charge branch manager, Prakash Bhoge, filed a police complaint on the same day. Police later booked six people, aged between 20 and 26 years, in connection with the robbery.
Two Accused Arrested from Uttar Pradesh
On May 4, police arrested two accused, Shubham Thakur, 24, and Vikas Singh Rajput, 30. They were arrested from Ayodhya and Gonda districts in Uttar Pradesh.
During the police remand of the two accused, investigators learnt that Kundan Bhagat was allegedly the mastermind behind the robbery. Bhagat is a wanted criminal and was lodged in Beur Jail in Patna, Bihar, in connection with another case.
Police alleged that Vikas Singh Rajput provided logistical support to Shubham Thakur and arranged a hideout for him.
Surat Police later arrested Kundan Bhagat from Beur Jail in Patna.
Vikas Rajput Files Bail Application
Vikas Singh Rajput, who is currently in judicial custody at Surat Central Jail, filed a bail application before the Surat District Court through his lawyer, P T Rana.
Assistant Public Prosecutor Santosh Gohil told the court of Additional Sessions Judge A N Dave that Rajput was involved in harbouring the main accused in the robbery case.
Defence Says Rajput Was Not Present During Robbery
Defence lawyer P T Rana told the court that Vikas Rajput runs Chandra Traders, a garment shop in Rae Bareli, Uttar Pradesh. He said Subhash Thakur also runs a shop nearby and the two are friends.
The lawyer argued that Rajput had not visited Surat to conduct a recce. He was also not present at the SBI branch when the robbery took place.
Court Says False Implication Cannot Be Ruled Out
The court observed that the possibility of Vikas Rajput being falsely implicated in the case could not be ruled out.
The court said, “In the present case, the possibility of false implication of the applicant-accused (Vikas) cannot be ruled out. So, prima facie, there is no material implicating the applicant accused in the commission of alleged offences other than harbouring the main accused…”
The court ordered Rajput’s release on bail after he executes a personal bond of Rs 10,000. The court also imposed several conditions while granting him bail.
