In the resumed hearing of the bribery case involving suspended DIG Harcharan Singh Bhullar and co-accused and middleman Kirshanu Sharda, separate petitions were filed seeking to recall the cognisance order passed by the CBI court on March 13. A cognisance order is a judicial act where a magistrate or judge formally takes notice of an alleged offence to initiate criminal proceedings.
While passing the cognisance order, the CBI court had said, “During the investigation, sufficient evidence in the shape of oral, documentary, electronic gadgets has come on record, which prima facie establishes that accused Bhullar and Sharda had conspired and demanded a bribe of ₹8 lakh from the complainant in lieu of settling the FIR registered against him”.
The CBI court of special judge Bhawna Jain on Monday issued a notice to the prosecution agency for March 27 to file a reply on the petition.
On behalf of accused Bhullar, his lawyer, SPS Bhullar, filed an application in the court stating that the court took cognisance of the case on March 13, while the prosecution’s chargesheet is still incomplete.
He stated that the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) report and documents related to the case have not yet been made available to the accused, even though an order was passed in this regard.
The defence argued that Bhullar was a Punjab government employee, and therefore, the state government’s consent was required before prosecuting, which was not obtained. Furthermore, the petition challenges the jurisdiction of the case.
{{/usCountry}}The defence argued that Bhullar was a Punjab government employee, and therefore, the state government’s consent was required before prosecuting, which was not obtained. Furthermore, the petition challenges the jurisdiction of the case.
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