A bench, headed by Justice Surya Kant, asked Abbas Ansari, son of late gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari, to first approach the Allahabad High Court for the grant of bail.

The Bench, also comprising Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, asked the Allahabad HC to decide the bail application on a priority basis, positively within a period of four weeks, considering the fact that Abbas Ansari has been incarcerated "for a reasonably long period" in other cases.

"Registry of the High Court is directed to place this order before the Hon’ble Chief Justice of the High Court so that the bail application to be moved by the petitioner can be listed before the appropriate Bench to ensure compliance of the time-line mentioned above," ordered the apex court.

It granted liberty to Abbas Ansari to revive his petition before the Supreme Court in the event of any delay due to unforeseen circumstances.

At the same time, the Justice Surya Kant-led Bench allowed another plea filed by Abbas Ansari seeking bail in connection with the unlawful jail visit case.

Abbas Ansari, when lodged at Chitrakoot jail, was caught meeting his wife Nikhat illegally in the jail in connivance with jail officials. In May, the Allahabad High Court had declined to grant bail to Abbas Ansari, considering his "profile and the background and family antecedents".

The Supreme Court granted bail to Abbas Ansari in the unlawful visit case, having regard to the fact that the investigation is complete, the charge sheet has already been filed and he has been in custody for more than 1.5 years and the conclusion of the trial will take some reasonable time. Without expressing any opinion on the merits of the case, the apex court ordered Abbas Ansari to be released on bail subject to his furnishing bail bonds to the satisfaction of the trial court.

"The petitioner shall fully cooperate with the trial proceedings and shall remain present in Court on each and every date of hearing unless granted exemption from personal appearance," the SC said.

Earlier in the day, a bench headed by Justice M.M. Sundresh granted bail to the sitting MLA from Uttar Pradesh’s Mau in connection with a money laundering case lodged by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The Bench, also comprising Justice Pankaj Mithal, set aside the May 9 order of the Allahabad High Court rejecting his bail application and ordered the petitioner to be released on bail on such conditions as may be imposed by the trial court.

The apex court said that the trial court will impose conditions so that the accused cannot influence witnesses or tamper with evidence. However, with the disposal of the plea seeking bail in the Gangsters Act, Abbas Ansari will remain in jail unless granted relief by the Allahabad High Court.