Majithia Bail: Hearing deferred as Punjab seeks time to apprise HC of ‘subsequent developments’

After Majithia’s petition for regular bail came up for hearing before a division Bench of Justices Augustine George Masih and Sandeep Moudgil, Punjab Advocate General Anmol Rattan Singh Sidhu sought adjournment “to file status report with regard to the subsequent developments” in the case.

Senior advocate RS Cheema with Arshdeep Singh Cheema appeared for Majithia, who had moved the High Court seeking regular bail in a case registered on December 20 in Mohali under the provisions of the Narcotic Drug and Psychotropic Substances Act.

Earlier, after Majithia’s bail plea was dismissed by a Mohali court in February, he had moved the Supreme Court seeking to quash the FIR registered against him. The apex court, however, on May 11, had refused to entertain Majithia’s plea and asked him to instead approach the High Court.

Majithia’s lawyers submitted that the present case “is blatantly political in nature” and has been registered with malafide objective to “target the petitioner, who is a mainstream leader of a major opposition party”.

“The then Congress led government left no stone unturned to misuse its power and position for wreaking vengeance against its political opponents and the petitioner is such target,” they contended.

The petition mentions that the political nature of the case is “writ large from the loudly propagated comments by senior functionaries of the political executive, as well as the head of the government that took over in September 2021”.

“To overawe the officers not to act independently, to ensure manipulation and conduct mock investigation by spineless and inimical offices of choice, dictates were made; threats had been given and the officers who did not slavishly toe the dictates of the powers that be, were maligned and threatened with persecution,” the petition reads.