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Saurabh Malik
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, February 18
More than two years after the police found themselves in a spot in a fake alibi case, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has asked the state to file a specific affidavit on the status of a departmental inquiry initiated against Inspector Jagbir Singh. The Bench has set a three-week deadline for the purpose. The Inspector and other accused have already been chargesheeted.
Justice Tejinder Singh Dhindsa said an explanation was required to be furnished in the affidavit on the delay in formulating the precise “articles of charge” against Jagbir Singh. Justice Dhindsa observed that a decision was taken by the competent authority more than six months ago to initiate the departmental inquiry, pursuant to which the cop’s services were placed under suspension from June 22, 2017.
The police, on the one hand, had corroborated the alibi of an alleged smuggler that he was with cops in a hotel near Chandigarh, but on the other, they recorded the statement of a police official that the accused fled from Tarn Taran after being intercepted by a police party.
The developments took place on a petition by Dharminder Singh for pre-arrest bail in a case under the NDPS Act registered in June 2014 at Sarai Amanat Khan police station in Amritsar district.
The Bench was told that the FIR was registered on a tip-off regarding heroin smuggling through the international border with Pakistan. After a vehicle was intercepted, Balkar Singh was apprehended, while Davinder Singh, Swaran Singh and Dharminder Singh allegedly fled. As the police failed to submit a challan within the prescribed period, Balkar was granted bail. A departmental inquiry was ordered against officials responsible for the late presentation of the challan. Petitioner Dharminder Singh’s alibi was accepted that he was in a hotel on the Zirakpur-Shimla highway along with Inspectors Jagbir Singh and Bhupinder Singh and DSP Tejinder Singh Virk on the day of the occurrence.
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