Chandigarh, September 11— The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Thursday granted the State of Punjab two weeks to respond to former minister Bikram Singh Majithia’s anticipatory bail petition, filed in connection with a criminal case registered in Amritsar.
Justice Tribhuvan Dahiya issued notice to the state and fixed September 23 as the next date of hearing. The petition arises from a case lodged on July 31 under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) at Civil Lines police station in Amritsar.
An Amritsar court had earlier dismissed Majithia’s anticipatory bail plea, prompting the senior Shiromani Akali Dal leader and former cabinet minister to move the High Court.
Majithia is currently lodged in Nabha jail. His counsel has consistently maintained that the case is politically motivated. “He has been falsely implicated in multiple cases to ensure he remains behind bars,” the lawyer has argued in earlier proceedings.
The court will now examine the state’s reply before taking up the matter later this month.
