Punjab: SAD leader Majithia moves HC, calls FIR against him 'political witch-hunting'

Chandigarh, Jul 1 (PTI) Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia on Tuesday moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court challenging the disproportionate assets case filed against him by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau and termed it "political witch-hunting" for criticising the AAP dispensation.

The bureau had on June 25 registered an FIR and arrested Majithia in the case allegedly involving laundering of Rs 540 crore of "drug money".

In a petition filed through his counsels, Arshdeep Singh Cheema and Sartej Singh Narula, Majithia sought appropriate relief against the "illegal" arrest and subsequent remand granted in the FIR registered under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.

"The FIR is a result of political witch-hunting and vendetta, initiated by the present political dispensation with the sole object of maligning and harassing the petitioner who has been a vocal critic and political opponent," read the petition.

The petitioner submitted that the FIR registered against him is "patently illegal" while his arrest was carried out in "gross violation of settled legal procedures".

The petitioner was kept in illegal custody for over two hours prior to his official arrest at 11.20 am, read the petition.

"The remand application filed by the investigating agency lacked any concrete or urgent investigative ground and merely relied on broad, speculative allegations such as the petitioner's alleged influence, foreign connections, and general statements about the need to confront him with documents or digital devices," it said.

"These assertions clearly reflect a motive to extract a confession or admission from the petitioner, in violation of the protection guaranteed under Article 20(3) of the Constitution of India," said the plea.

The petitioner submitted that the Supreme Court, by its detailed order on March 4, had refused custodial interrogation of the petitioner despite the same allegations being pressed before it via multiple affidavits filed by the Punjab government.

"The Hon'ble Court had instead directed the petitioner to cooperate with the SIT and join the investigation, which was fully complied with. Despite the petitioner's cooperation and the findings of the apex court, the state has once again resorted to seeking police custody by concealing material facts and misrepresenting urgency before the magistrate," read the plea.

The present petition, therefore, raises important questions of law and principle concerning abuse of criminal process, misuse of remand powers, and the right to fair investigation and liberty, it stated.

Majithia prayed for appropriate reliefs, including quashing of the "illegal" remand order and appropriate directions to prevent further "abuse" of process.

Following his arrest, Majithia was sent on a seven-day vigilance remand on June 26 by a Mohali court.

In the fresh FIR registered against Majithia, the vigilance bureau claimed that preliminary investigations revealed that more than Rs 540 crore of "drug money" has been laundered through several ways, and it was allegedly facilitated by Majithia.

This FIR against Majithia stems from an ongoing investigation being conducted by a Punjab Police special investigation team into the 2021 drug case in which the Shiromani Akali Dal leader was booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. The action was taken on the basis of a 2018 report of the anti-drug Special Task Force.

Majithia spent more than five months in Patiala jail and walked out of prison in August 2022 after the Punjab and Haryana High Court granted him bail. PTI CHS -- RHL