Akali leader Majithia arrested in drugs case (Lead)

Chandigarh, June 25 (IANS) The Punjab Vigilance Bureau, on Wednesday, conducted a raid on the private residence of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader and former Minister Bikram Singh Majithia in Amritsar in a drugs case and subsequently arrested him and was taken to Mohali, near here.

Before being taken into custody, Majithia hugged his sons and said, "Stay strong, don't be afraid."

"Bhagwant Mann-ji, understand this clearly no matter how many FIRs you register, I will not be afraid, nor will your government be able to suppress my voice," he said in a video message that was shared during the raid, adding, "I have always spoken up on Punjab's issues and will continue to do so."

Majithia has been facing charges under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act since December 2021, ahead of the Assembly elections in Punjab.

A spokesperson for the Punjab government said that raids on 26 locations, including Majithia's residence in Amritsar, were conducted jointly by the Vigilance Bureau and the state police in connection with drug trade.

"Raids are being conducted in search of drug money," said an official.

A team of the Vigilance Bureau, led by Senior Superintendent of Police Lakhbir Singh, raided the house of Majithia at the posh Green Avenue locality.

Majithia's wife Ganieve Kaur said that around 30 people barged into their house.

Majithia, who has been saying the cases were politically motivated, contending they had already been investigated by high-ranking police officers, is the brother of former Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal and brother-in-law of SAD President President Sukhbir Singh Badal.

Responding to raids on Majithia's residence, Sukhbir Singh Badal on X said, "Shiromani Akali Dal stands steadfast with Bikram Singh Majithia. It is clear that Chief Minister @BhagwantMann & @AamAadmiParty have been unnerved by the resolute manner in which Majithia has taken on the government and exposed its corrupt and amoral acts."

"We will not be cowed down by the brutal attempts to suppress the voice of the people expressed by Majithia and other Akali leaders by letting loose state agencies against them. This is not the first time that political vendetta has been unleashed against the Akali leadership. We will take it head on," he added.

Majithia, who has been a Minister in the Akali Dal governments between 2007 and 2017, had moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court in 2022 after a Mohali trial court dismissed his anticipatory bail petition in a case under the NDPS Act registered on December 20, 2021.

In a 49-page first information report (FIR) filed by the state police Crime Branch at the Mohali police station, the SAD leader has been booked under sections 25, 27A and 29 of the NDPS Act.

In his plea, Majithia had termed the case a result of "political vendetta" and argued that there was no credible and legally admissible material against him.

The court, however, had granted an interim bail but allowed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to question Majithia.

The High Court had observed that there was no material placed on record showing possession, transportation, storing by or recovery of any contraband from Majithia.

"All recoveries in the concluded trials have been effected from specific individuals and the petitioner was not shown therein to have any role in that regard," it had observed, referring to convictions of drugs' seizure cases of Jagdish Bola and others.

However, the High Court clarified in the 26-page judgment that the court's opinion was tentative and was made only for deciding his bail application and should not be construed as an expression of a "final opinion".

In March 2025, the Supreme Court had directed Majithia to appear before the SIT in Patiala after the state government reported that he was refusing to cooperate with the probe.

However, in April the apex court dismissed the petition filed by Punjab, challenging the bail granted to Majithia.

"The respondent (Majithia) was participating in the process of further investigation. In view of the said facts and also taking note that the liberty was granted on August 10, 2022, more than two-and-a-half-year ago, at present we are not inclined to interfere with the impugned order. Accordingly, the Special Leave Petition stands dismissed," observed a bench comprising Justice J.K. Maheshwari and Justice Aravind Kumar, rejecting the state's petition.

--IANS

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