High Court grants bail to Akali leader Majithia in drugs case
Darpan News Desk IANS, 10 Aug, 2022 10:16 AM
Chandigarh, Aug 10 (IANS) The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Wednesday granted bail to senior Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia, who was in jail over for over five months for his alleged involvement in a drugs case registered in December 2021.
A division Bench of Justices M.S. Ramachandra Rao and Sureshwar Thakur had reserved the order on the bail plea on July 29.
Majithia, a former minister lodged in the Central Jail in Patiala, had moved the High Court for the regular bail in the case registered under the provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.
In his petition, Majithia said the then Congress government in the state did not leave any stone unturned to misuse its power and position for wreaking vengeance against its political opponents and the petitioner was once such target.
In an order, the High Court observed that there is no material placed on record showing possession, transportation, storing by or recovery of any contraband from the petitioner. "All recoveries in the concluded trials had been effected from specific individuals and the petitioner was not shown therein to have any role in that regard," it observed.
"We are satisfied that reasonable grounds exist to believe that the petitioner is not guilty of the offences alleged against him in the FIR and he is not likely to commit such offences while on bail," said the judges.
"It will take time for the trial to start and culminate. So no fruitful purpose is going to be served even if the petitioner is kept in judicial custody for a further indefinite period. We are of the opinion that continued detention of the petitioner, which started on February 24, is not warranted and he is entitled to be released on bail," the Bench added.
The case will come up for final hearing on July 5 after the summer break. Additional Solicitor General Satya Pal Jain refuted the allegations of illegal detention and said not even a single officer was detained.
According to sources, Singh, a resident of Faridkot, was the person who had launched the attack on Monday. A rocket-propelled grenade or RPG was fired from the street that shattered the window panes of Punjab Police's intelligence headquarters in Mohali.
Lt Gen Aujla, an alumnus of the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, was commissioned in December 1987 and has had an illustrious military career spanning 35 years during which he has held varied prestigious command, staff and instructional appointments.
The area around the Intelligence Bureau office has been sealed and investigation is in progress. A bomb disposal and forensic squads have been positioned at the spot. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann spoke to Director General of Police V.K. Bhawra and sought details about the incident.
Notably, the police detained several people, including party workers, who were not allowing the SDMC to carry out the demolition drive at Shaheen Bagh. After the agitation was quelled, the bulldozer moved forward to demolish the illegal encroachment, an iron structure in front of a building. It is at this juncture that Khan reached the spot and was seen speaking to the officials.
