Hyderabad, Aug. 19: The software industry today welcomed Satyam founder B. Ramalinga Raju’s release on bail, but legal circles said it had further reduced chances of a speedy resolution of the case.

“Even in judicial custody Raju had stalled the trial for over six months. Imagine what his aides can do now. They will try every trick to ensure that the trial takes longer,” said K. Narasimha Reddy, a member of the Andhra Pradesh High Court bar council.

On January 7 last year, Raju had confessed that he was responsible for a Rs 7,800-crore accounting fraud at what was then the country’s fourth biggest software exporter.

But proceedings have been stalled as Raju, undergoing treatment for a liver infection, has not been appearing in court since September.

On August 16, he retracted his confession in the trial court by responding in the negative to a questionnaire sent by the court to the state-run NIMS, where he is being treated for hepatitis C. The burden of proof for Raju’s fraud now rests with the CBI.

Legal sources said this was the worry of the agency, which has been contesting Raju’s bail plea. The CBI, which called the fraud “economic terrorism”, fears that out on bail, Raju would be able to influence the 250 witnesses, mostly former employees of Satyam.

A spokesman for the Hyderabad Software Exporters Association disagreed. The case was one of “self-confession”, he said, and Raju should not have been treated like an ordinary criminal.

Raju’s lawyer Bharat Kumar said his client had “no intention” to flee. “If he was a crook, he would have gone abroad and released his statement from there,” Kumar said.

At NIMS, the security around Raju’s was withdrawn today. His family held special prayers at his Jubilee Hills home. “I am happy he will be home soon,” said his wife Nandini to a close friend yesterday.