Amritpal, aides move HC for meeting chosen lawyers

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, July 10

Arrested in April, pro-Khalistan activist Amritpal Singh and three others today moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court for quashing the July 6 order passed by the Amritsar Deputy Commissioner denying them the right to consult and be defended by a lawyer of their choice. This, they contended, was mandated under Article 22(1) of the Constitution.

‘DC denied us right’

The Amritsar Deputy Commissioner had denied Amritpal and his associates the right to consult and be defended by a lawyer of their choice, they claimed

In their petition, Amritpal, along with Harjit Singh, Sarabjeet Singh Kalsi and Varinder Singh Fauji, also sought directions to the DC for arranging and ensuring their “legal meetings” with the lawyers of their choice “so they could make effective defence in the criminal cases as well as challenge the orders passed under the National Security Act (NSA) by the state of Punjab”.

The petition, filed through counsel Navkiran Singh, Simranjit Singh and Harpreet Kaur, is expected to come up for hearing this week. It said the state transported the petitioners to Dibrugarh where access to lawyers was being restricted.

Counsel Navkiran Singh said the NSA was a preventive detention statute. All its requirements were time-bound. “Time is the essence as the same would expire in a year and already four months have passed,” he added.

Meanwhile, Gurinder Pal Singh Aujla, who is also confined in the Dibrugarh central jail, today filed a petition under the Contempt of Courts Act for initiating of contempt proceedings against Amritsar DC Amit Talwar for wilful disobedience of an order passed on April 18 on meeting a lawyer of his choice.

Navkiran Singh submitted that the HC disposed of the petition after the state counsel submitted that an appropriate application, if forwarded to the Amritsar District Magistrate, by his lawyer or relative would be considered and decided in accordance with law.

Navkiran added he sought permission from the respondent in accordance with the HC order to meet the petitioner and other detainees at Dibrugarh jail through an email dated July 3.

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