KATHMANDU: The Supreme Court has ordered the release of Nepal Investment Mega Bank Limited (NIMB) Chief Executive Officer Jyoti Pandey on a personal recognizance bond while allowing the investigation against him to continue.

A joint bench of Justices Saranga Subedi and Shanti Singh Thapa directed authorities to release Pandey in the presence of a senior advocate, according to Supreme Court information officer Nirajan Pandey.

The court also ordered that Pandey must not leave the country without prior permission if the need for foreign travel arises.

Issuing a habeas corpus order, the court concluded that there were not sufficient grounds at this stage to keep Pandey in custody for investigation purposes.

Earlier, Pandey’s wife, Niru Dahal, had filed a habeas corpus petition at the Supreme Court, claiming that he was being detained unlawfully.

The Central Investigation Bureau had arrested Pandey while investigating allegations including criminal breach of trust related to the auction process of assets belonging to Smart Telecom.