Bikram Majithia moves court for anticipatory bail

Tribune News Service

Mohali, December 23

Two days after Bikramjit Singh Majithia was booked in an NDPS case, the former Akali minister approached the Mohali district court for anticipatory bail on Thursday. Among other things, he claimed that “targeting” him was one of the major “election planks of the current government”.

Also read: ED yet to quiz 18 NRIs in Jagdish Bhola drug case in which Bikram Majithia was also summoned

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SIT records ADGP Sidhu’s statement

SIT probing the drugs case against Majithia has recorded the statement of ADGP Harpreet Singh Sidhu, on whose report the FIR was filed.

Missing links in Bhola drug case

• In 2015, ED chargesheeted five NRIs in multi-crore Bhola drug case, in which Majithia too was summoned
• The ED could not probe 18 NRI suspects, who fled

After hearing the arguments, the court of Additional District and Sessions Judge Sandeep Kumar Singla called for the police record and adjourned the hearing for tomorrow. The bail application was filed by Majithia’s counsel Damanbir Singh Sobti, HS Dhanoa, Arshdeep Singh Cheema and Somnath Tayal. The State of Punjab was represented by district attorney Sanjeev Batra and Rakesh Goyal.

Alleging vendetta, Majithia said the case against him was an election stunt as the Congress-led Punjab Government had been “day and night browbeating the officers” to register false cases against SAD’s senior leadership. “The government has changed three DGPs over the span of three months... Police officers have been coerced into falsely implicating the applicant/petitioner... Officers have been induced with promotions and plum postings,” the anticipatory bail application read.

It was stated in the bail application that trials in certain cases registered under the NDPS Act had concluded with the acquittal of some accused and conviction of others. None of the accused in these cases had referred to Majithia in their statements before the court under Section 313 of the CrPC or in their defence. The only exception was Maninder Singh Aulakh, who took the defence that he was falsely implicated due to animosity with Majithia. Aulakh was acquitted by the trial court.

The bail application raised questions about the acting DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyay, pointing out the latter had in 2003 registered a ‘false’ case against the Badal family. It further said he had been appointed acting DGP Chattopadhyay in place of Iqbal Preet Singh Sahota to get Majithia booked in the case.

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