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Punjab: Akali leader Bikram Majithia’s judicial custody extended till August 2
Former minister was brought from New Nabha Jail in Patiala for his appearance in Mohali court in disproportionate assets case.
A Mohali court on Saturday extended the judicial custody of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia till August 2 in connection with a disproportionate assets case involving alleged laundering of ₹540 crore in drug money.
Majithia was produced before the Mohali court on Saturday amid tight security arrangements, having been brought from New Nabha Jail in Patiala, where he has been in judicial custody since July 6.
Speaking to the media, public prosecutor Ferry Sofat said the court allowed the application of extending Majithia’s judicial custody.
Majithia’s counsel Damandeep Singh Sobti, accompanied by Majithia’s wife, Ganieve Kaur Majithia, told media outside the court that the SAD leader was facing a serious life threat while being lodged with convicts and undertrials.
“We have informed the court about the threat to his life in jail and have requested that he be shifted to another barrack,” Sobti said. “We also told the court that we are not being allowed to meet him, which is a violation of his legal rights.”
On July 17, the plea for shifting Majithia to a separate cell was adjourned to July 22 after the public prosecutor failed to appear in court.
The Punjab Vigilance Bureau had arrested Majithia from his house in Amritsar on June 25 following a fresh FIR in the disproportionate assets case.
This FIR against Majithia stems from an ongoing investigation being conducted by a Special Investigation Team of Punjab Police into the 2021 drug case.
In 2021, Majithia was booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act based on a 2018 report by the anti-drug Special Task Force (STF). He had spent over five months in Patiala Jail before being granted bail by the Punjab and Haryana high court in August 2022.
Court to take up 4 applications on July 22
Meanwhile, the Mohali court has scheduled a hearing on July 22 for four applications filed by Majithia. These include a request for shifting to a separate jail barrack, citing his Z-plus security status; a regular bail application; demand for a copy of the arrest memo; and plea for the return of house keys seized from his Mashobra residence by the Vigilance Bureau.
