The North News
Chandigarh, March 21
The family of Army Colonel Pushpinder Singh Bath has rejected the Punjab government’s magisterial inquiry into assault by police personnel in Patiala, demanding a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe instead. Colonel Pushpinder Singh Bath and his son were attacked by Punjab Police personnel outside a restaurant.
The state has appointed Paramvir Singh, Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation of Patiala, to lead the inquiry, but the officer’s wife, Jasvinder Kaur, dismissed it as an “eyewash.”
Speaking to reporters after meeting Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria in Chandigarh yesterday, Kaur accused the government of shielding its police officers. “This is a tactic adopted by the Punjab government to safeguard their blue-eyed boys,” she said. She was accompanied by her son, Angad Singh, and a relative.
Despite suspending 12 police officers, including three inspectors, Patiala police have yet to name them in the First Information Report (FIR), six days after the incident. A medical report from Government Rajindra Hospital has also contradicted claims that Colonel Bath and his son had consumed alcohol before the altercation, refuting statements made by the eatery owner.
An official document accessat it “holds the members of the Armed Forces in the highest esteem” and remains committed to a “fair and impartial inquiry.”
To ensure transparency, the government has granted Paramvir Singh, IAS, special executive magistrate powers under Section 15 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023. He has been directed to complete his inquiry within three weeks and submit a detailed report.
The assault, reportedly triggered by a parking dispute, led to the immediate suspension of the 12 officers and a departmental inquiry. However, the absence of formal charges against the suspended officers has raised concerns over police accountability in the state.
