The Supreme Court refused to grant interim bail or stay CBI proceedings against jailed Punjab DIG Harcharan Singh Bhullar, warning his counsel against pressing the matter. The top court allowed withdrawal of the plea, asking Bhullar to pursue relief before the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain a petition seeking interim relief filed by jailed Punjab Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Harcharan Singh Bhullar.
The suspended police officer had approached the top court seeking a stay on the ongoing Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) proceedings against him and also sought interim bail. However, the Supreme Court declined to grant any relief.
During the hearing, Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant clearly indicated that the Court was not inclined to interfere at this stage.
While rejecting the plea, the CJI also cautioned the senior lawyer appearing for Bhullar against pressing the matter further, warning that it could lead to strong observations from the Court.
The Chief Justice stated,
“Mr Chaudhary, better don’t make us open our mouth, and invite observations from us.”
The case has already seen setbacks for Bhullar at both judicial levels. Earlier, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had refused to grant him interim relief, including a stay on the CBI investigation and interim release from jail. The High Court had instead adjourned the matter and listed it for further hearing in January.
Appearing before the Supreme Court, Senior Advocate Vikram Chaudhary, representing Bhullar, argued that the High Court should at least have decided the plea for interim relief rather than granting a long adjournment.
He submitted that the High Court’s decision to defer the matter for nearly a month without addressing the interim prayers was unjustified.
When the senior counsel requested the Supreme Court to direct the High Court to consider the interim relief urgently, the Chief Justice again expressed strong disinclination.
Following the Court’s remarks, the counsel sought permission to withdraw the writ petition, with liberty to continue pursuing remedies before the High Court.
The Supreme Court allowed the withdrawal but made a pointed remark while doing so, observing,
“you are already there and have a battery of highly qualified lawyers to assist you.”
With this, the matter before the Supreme Court came to an end without any relief being granted to the suspended DIG.
Bhullar had earlier approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking to quash the CBI’s bribery case against him. His primary argument was that the CBI does not have the authority to investigate offences in Punjab without the consent of the State Government.
He contended that the registration and continuation of the case were illegal due to the absence of such consent.
The CBI, however, strongly opposed this claim. It argued that the First Information Report (FIR) was lawfully registered in Chandigarh, a Union Territory, where the agency has clear jurisdiction.
The CBI maintained that it was fully empowered to investigate the matter and that no state consent was required under the circumstances.
Meanwhile, Bhullar also suffered another legal setback when a special CBI court on Thursday dismissed his default bail application in a disproportionate assets case. This further weakened his position as he continues to remain in judicial custody.
The case against Harcharan Singh Bhullar stems from a bribery trap laid by the CBI. Bhullar, a 2009-batch senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, was posted as Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of the Ropar Range in Punjab at the time of his arrest.
The CBI alleged that he was caught while demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 8 lakh to quash a criminal case.
According to the agency, Bhullar had demanded bribe money through an intermediary to “settle” a criminal case filed against a local businessman. The investigation further revealed that he was allegedly seeking recurring monthly payments as part of the illegal arrangement.
The CBI has also claimed to have uncovered evidence of massive unexplained assets during the investigation.
These include approximately Rs 5 crore in cash, luxury vehicles, jewellery, and several high-end watches, which the agency says are disproportionate to the officer’s known sources of income.
With both the High Court and the Supreme Court refusing to grant interim relief, Bhullar will now have to continue his legal battle before the Punjab and Haryana High Court when the matter comes up for hearing in January.
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