Ex-NSE Chairman Chitra Ramkrishna is granted bail by the Delhi HC in the phone tapping case

Chitra Ramakrishna, a former CEO of the National Stock Exchange, was granted bail on Thursday by the Delhi High Court in a money laundering case involving suspected illegal phone tapping. In the CBI case regarding the alleged phone tapping, Chitra Ramkrishna is already out on bail. The precise order must be followed.

"The application is allowed. The applicant is granted bail," said Justice Jasmeet Singh.

The former NSE managing director, who had already been detained by the CBI in connection with the suspected NSE co-location scam, was taken into custody in the current case on July 14 of last year. In September of last year, the high court released her on bail in the CBI case.

She had requested bail in the current case, but the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had objected on the grounds that she was the conspiracy's "mastermind."According to the ED, the phone tapping case relates to a time frame between 2009 and 2017 during which former NSE CEO Ravi Narain, Ramkrishna, Executive Vice-President Ravi Varanasi, Head (Premises) Mahesh Haldipur, and others conspired to defraud the NSE and its employees. To this end, they hired iSEC Services Pvt Ltd to illegally intercept phone calls of NSE employees under the pretence of conducting.

Ramakrishna had requested bail and contended that neither a scheduled offence nor the allegations against her met the requirements of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

Ramkrishna served as Joint MD NSE from 2009 until March 31, 2013, when he was appointed to the role. The first of April 2013 saw her promoted as MD and CEO. She departed NSE in December 2016.