Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy’s attacker, Janipalli Srinivasa Rao, secured bail from the AP high court on Thursday. The court granted him conditional bail with Rs 25,000 and two sureties.

The court told Srinivasa Rao not to speak to the media about the case. It also directed him to appear before the Mummadivaram police station on every Sunday till further orders.

Srinivasa Rao challenged the NIA court’s decision cancelling his petition for bail. He told the court that he had been in jail for five years and there was no investigation. He further told the court that Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy was not attending the court for hearings.

Srinivasa Rao is an accused in the attack on Jagan Mohan Reddy at Visakhapatnam airport. The accused attacked Jagan Mohan Reddy with a sharp knife while trying to take a selfie with Jagna Mohan Reddy in the airport.

Jagan Mohan Reddy escaped unhurt and was treated in Hyderabad before the 2019 general election. The case was heard in the NIA court in Vijayawada for three years and then was shifted to Visakhapatnam two years ago.

Srinivasa Rao’s parents held a fasting protest in Vijayawada demanding that their son be released on bail. Even Srinivasa Rao also held a protest in the jail on the same demand. The high court heard the arguments on both sides last month and reserved the judgement.

The advocate for Srinivasa Rao told the high court that Jagan Mohan Reddy was not attending the court for the hearings forcing Srinivasa Rao to be in jail. It was not proper for a person facing murder charges to be in jail without trial, the advocate told the court.