In a major setback to senior Akali Dal leader and former minister Bikram Singh Majithia, a Mohali court on Friday rejected his anticipatory bail plea. The court in its 14-page order ruled that the applicant had tried to make out a case of political vendetta, but he himself was one of the powerful persons in the state politics till 2017 and the delay in lodging the FIR could not be a ground to presume that the whole case against the applicant was false.
“The FIR has been registered on the basis of a report, which prima facie shows the involvement of the applicant in the drug trade and harbouring of accused involved in drug mafia. All these facts and financial transactions and extend of the complicity of the applicant needs to be thoroughly investigated, which can be done only under custodial interrogation of the applicant and not under the protection of anticipatory bail,” the court said.
It also ordered that keeping in view all the facts and the gravity of the offence, it was not a fit case where the benefit of anticipatory bail could be granted to the bail applicant.
“Accordingly, finding no merit in the bail application and the same is hereby dismissed,” the court ruled.
The Punjab Police had filed cases against Majithia under the NDPS act earlier this week after it claimed it had carried out a fresh probe in an old drug case. The Akali Dal had alleged that there was a political vendetta behind the registration of the FIR in view of the forthcoming elections. The Punjab government had denied the allegations.
Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi on Friday said that Majithia has been booked in a drug case as there was enough evidence against him. The CM also pledged to catch the “big fish” involved in the drug racket, while also criticising his predecessor Captain Amarinder Singh, saying he did not make the STF report on the case public and now gave a statement in “support” of Majithia.
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