The North News
Chandigarh, July 8
With no relief, the Punjab and Haryana High Court on Tuesday adjourned the hearing of a petition filed by Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader and former Punjab Minister Bikram Singh Majithia, who has contested his arrest and police remand in a disproportionate assets case. The matter will now be taken up on July 29.
Majithia has been lodged in Nabha Jail, where CCTV cameras have been installed in his barrack due to security concerns. According to jail officials, no special facilities will be extended to him during his judicial custody.
Majithia, currently in judicial custody as per a Mohali court order, has alleged that his arrest was “illegal” and politically motivated. He moved the high court after the Punjab Vigilance Bureau registered a First Information Report (FIR) against him on 25 June under Sections 13(1)(b) and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
In his petition, Majithia claimed that he was picked up from his residence in Amritsar at around 9 a.m. but was formally arrested only at 11:20 a.m., which he argues violates Article 22(2) of the Indian Constitution and Section 187 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita. His legal team said this delay amounted to illegal detention.
Majithia has alleged that the case is a result of “political vendetta” and an attempt to muzzle dissent. His lawyers also presented video footage and referred to the remand order dated 26 June, asserting that procedural norms were violated during his arrest and remand process.
