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‘Everyday drama’: SC censures Punjab govt over absenteeism of counsel
A bench of justices J K Maheshwari and Aravind Kumar made the observation while hearing a plea filed by the state government against the Punjab and Haryana high court order of bail to Majithia
The Supreme Court on Monday censured the Punjab government over the ‘absenteeism’ of its advocates in cases and asked the state’s advocate general to ensure their attendance.
A bench of justices J K Maheshwari and Aravind Kumar made the observation while hearing a plea filed by the state government against the Punjab and Haryana high court order of bail to former minister and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia on August 10, 2022.
“Advocate general of Punjab, we have already called you in one case. In your state, even after service of notice, your panel advocates in the Supreme Court are not appearing. We have already referred (to this) in two orders. This is everyday drama. State of Punjab means absent. It is happening not only in criminal cases, but civil cases as well. Nobody is appearing,” the bench said.
The top court adjourned the plea by two weeks after the state government sought time. During the hearing, Punjab advocate general Gurminder Singh apologised to the court and assured the issue won’t be repeated.
The top court had directed Majithia to appear before special investigation team (SIT) headquarters, Patiala, which is probing a drugs case against him. The order came after the Punjab government said Majithia was refusing to cooperate in the probe.
Majithia said he was ‘being harassed for political reasons’ and asked the court to fix dates for interrogation.
The high court noted ‘reasonable grounds’ to believe he was not guilty but limited its observation only to the adjudication of the bail plea. The trial court should proceed independently, the court added.
Majithia walked out after spending over five months in a Patiala jail. He is the brother-in-law of former SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal and brother of ex-union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal.
Majithia was booked on the basis of a 2018 report of the anti-drug special task force.
The report stemmed from the confessions of multiple accused, including Jagjit Singh Chahal, Jagdish Singh Bhola and Maninder Singh Aulakh, to the Enforcement Directorate.
