Why accused not arrested, Bathinda SSP asked

Chandigarh, November 3

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has taken the police to task over the non-arrest of an accused by directing the Bathinda SSP to file an affidavit, explaining why a petitioner-accused, evading arrest, had not been taken into custody so far.

For the purpose of filing the affidavit before the High Court Registrar-General, Justice Arvind Singh Sangwan has set a two-month deadline. “The Registry is directed to communicate this order to the SSP, Bathinda, at the earliest, for compliance,” he added.

The direction came even as the judge dismissed as withdrawn the anticipatory bail plea filed by petitioner-accused Mangal Singh. The matter was placed before the Bench after the petitioner-accused filed a second petition for grant of anticipatory bail in a December 2019 cheating case, registered under Sections 420 and 34 of the IPC at Dyalpura police station in Bathinda district.

Justice Sangwan observed the earlier petition was dismissed as withdrawn on August 11. “After arguing the matter for some time, counsel for the petitioner, finding that the court is not inclined to grant the concession of anticipatory bail to the petitioner, seeks permission to withdraw the present petition,” he observed in the order before issuing the directions. — TNS