TDP president and former chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu was on Tuesday granted bail by the Andhra Pradesh High Court for four weeks on medical grounds in the multi-crore skill development case.

The court ordered him to surrender at Rajahmundry Central Prison on November 28.

“With a humanitarian perspective in mind and considering the petitioner’s health condition, this court is inclined to grant temporary bail on health grounds to the petitioner, enabling him to undergo the required surgery on his right eye,” Justice T Mallikarjuna Rao said.

The court also asked Naidu (73) not to make any direct or indirect inducement, threat or promise to those related to the case. Notably, the bail was granted at a time when another corruption case was lodged against the leader by the Andhra Pradesh Crime Investigation Bureau (APCID).

Naidu’s family had raised a hue and cry over his health condition, alleging that he has lost weight and any further weight loss due to dehydration might affect his kidneys.

Although jail authorities had dismissed the allegations, the court took into account the letter from a private hospital where the former chief minister underwent treatment. The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) supremo suffers from diabetes, hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy and cataract in the right eye.

“There is no remote possibility that the petitioner would evade the judicial process or pose a flight risk. It has been submitted that the petitioner has strong ties within society and is a respected figure, having previously served as the chief minister of Andhra Pradesh and currently holding the position of opposition leader and sitting member of the Legislative Assembly,” the court said in its order.

It also asked Naidu to furnish a bail bond of Rs 1 lakh with two sureties of the like amount to the satisfaction of the trial court. He was allowed to get treated in a hospital of his choice at his own expense. The petitioner shall provide the details about the treatment given to him and the hospital where he got treated in a sealed cover to the jail superintendent, the court added.

The court has added more conditions to the bail order of Chandrababu Naidu. The TDP president was directed not to participate in political rallies, give interviews or make political comments in connection with this case during his bail period.

The additional conditions came in after additional advocate general requested the court to add more conditions including that two police officers in the rank of deputy superintendent of police should accompany him and submit regular reports to the court but it was not accepted.

After walking out of jail 50 days after he was sent in on judicial remand Naidu expressed his gratitude to the people while maintaining he has not indulged in any kind of corruption during his long political career of 45 years.

“When I was in trouble you all came on the roads and prayed for me. I will never forget the affection shown to me not only in Andhra Pradesh but also in Telangana and across the world,” he said and separately thanked Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan for declaring his support openly. He also thanked the political parties who condemned his arrest as well as the IT employees of Hyderabad who benefited from the Cyber Towers setup during his tenure.

Earlier Naidu’s Z category security convoy reached the Rajahmundry central jail to bring him back to his home at Undavalli. As Naidu came out it was an emotional moment for his own family members including his grandson , his close aides and leaders and the cadre who chanted his name, raised slogans and broke through cordons.

A fresh case has been lodged by the APCID yesterday and Naidu’s legal team approached the High Court for anticipatory bail in the case related to issue of illegal liquor licenses in which he is accused number 3.