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Kotkapura Police firing case: HC grants anticipatory bail to Sukhbir
The Punjab and Haryana HC on Tuesday granted anticipatory bail to Shiromani Akali Dal leader and the former deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal in the 2015 Kotkapura police firing case.
The Punjab and Haryana high court on Tuesday granted anticipatory bail to Shiromani Akali Dal leader and the former deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal in the 2015 Kotkapura police firing case.
The bench of justice Raj Mohan Singh recorded that the court at this stage was not in a position to appreciate all the allegations of mala fide in the chargesheet against the political set-up and the police officer at the time of the incident as the investigation conducted earlier has already been quashed by the high court and Badal was not named as an accused in the challan filed earlier. The court has asked him to appear before trial court within 15 days and further directed that he be not arrested till the next date of hearing which is May 30.
Earlier, Badal’s counsel had told the court that the allegations are that he had departed for Gurugram in order to make an excuse to evade the responsibility of illegal action of the police despite having knowledge of the third incident of sacrilege and the growing resentment amongst Sikh sangat at Bargari and Kotkapura. The allegation of culpable silence of Parkash Singh Badal, the then chief minister and strategic absence of the petitioner (Sukhbir Badal) cannot be presumed to be an act in connivance or conspiracy at this juncture and the same would be subject to material to be adduced by the prosecution during trial, his counsel had submitted.
He had also alleged mala fide on the part of the political set-up in the state. The petitioner has been “implicated” at the whims of the present political set-up, who had openly proclaimed on different platforms that the petitioner and others would not be spared. There is a delay of more than seven years, and the same is based on vague material, without there being any legal evidence, it was further submitted.
On March 16, a Faridkot court dismissed Sukhbir’s anticipatory bail plea but granted interim protection from arrest to Sukhbir’s father and former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal on health grounds.
Meanwhile, the court gave interim protection from arrest to another accused in the chargesheet, former senior superintendent of police (SSP) Sukhminder Singh Mann.
Last month, the additional director general of police (ADGP) LK Yadav-led special investigation team (SIT) filed a chargesheet in the police firing case, naming Parkash Singh Badal and Sukhbir, who also held the home portfolio, and former Punjab Police chief Sumedh Singh Saini, the former SSP, among other accused.