Magistrate/ Sessions Court Competent To Grant Default Bail Even If Regular Bail Plea Pending Before HC : Punjab & Haryana High Court

In a significant ruling, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has clarified that a Magistrate or the Sessions Court, as the case may be, retains the competence to grant default bail to an accused, even when a regular bail application is pending before a Sessions Court or the High Court. The development comes while hearing a regular bail plea wherein during the pendency of the application,...

Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann Gets Interim Exemption From Personal Appearance In Defamation Case Filed By Former AAP MLA

The Punjab & Haryana High Court issued notice on a plea filed by Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann, challenging a Magistrate court order summoning him in a defamation case filed by former AAP MLA Nazar Singh Manshahia.The case filed back in 2019 alleges that Mann made defamatory statement against Manshahia in a press conference. Mann allegedly said that Manshahia joined Congress party for Rs 10...

Punjab & Haryana High Court Imposes ₹10K Cost On Investigating Officer For Not Following HC Order, Directs Recovery Of Amount From Salary

The Punjab and Haryana High Court imposed a cost of ₹10,000 on an Investigating Officer (IO) who failed to follow Court's direction to remain present along with the case diary.The Court was hearing a protection plea against Police Officers who allegedly withdrawn over Rs. 6.4 lakhs from petitioner's account and arrested him in a cyber crime case, without following the due process. During...

Gross Misconduct Of Police: Punjab & Haryana High Court Flags Negligent Approach Of Lower-Rank Officers In Collecting Medical Reports

The Punjab and Haryana High Court strongly criticised the gross misconduct and negligent attitude of lower-rank police officers in handling criminal investigations.The development occurred during the hearing of a pre-arrest bail plea filed by a man accused of injuring a pregnant woman. The Court noted that although the incident occurred on June 16, the Investigation Officer moved an...

Punjab & Haryana High Court Declines To Grant Interim Stay On Former SAD Member Ranjit Singh Gill's Arrest

The Punjab & Haryana High Court today refused to grant interim relief of stay on arrest to former Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) member Ranjit Singh Gill.It was alleged that Gill has been maliciously targeted by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau, solely on account of his political affiliation, immediately after he joined Bharatiya Janata Party (B.J.P.) on August 01. The Vigilance Bureau was...

P&H High Court Flags Police-Criminals Nexus After Complainant Who Lodged Corruption Case With Evidence Agrees To Settle Case

In a scathing observation, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has flagged a nexus between the police and criminals after a complainant, who had initially lodged a corruption case supported by the audio-recording, later entered into a compromise with the accused. The Court was hearing a pre-arrest bail plea of a man who was accused of asking the complainant, a hotel owner in Punjab's Patiala to...

Online Bail Order Sufficient For Release To Immediately Restore Accused's Liberty, No Need To Wait For Certified Copy: P&H High Court

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has held that a downloaded copy of a bail or suspension of sentence order is sufficient for securing the release of an accused. The court clarified when the certified copy of the order is not immediately sent by the Registry, the downloaded copy must be accepted by the Court before whom bail bond is furnished.A division bench of Justice Anoop Chitkara and...

High Court Seeks Criminal Antecedent Of 'RTI Activist' Who Alleged Embezzlement In Punjab Govt's Purchase Of High-End Utility Vehicles

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has sought details of the criminal background of a litigant stated to be an RTI activist, who alleged financial irregularities in the Punjab government's procurement of a high-end utility vehicle.During the hearing, Advocate General Maninderjit Singh Bedi appearing for the Punjab Government, submitted that as per the Public Interest Litigation Rules, 2010,...

S.223 BNSS Which Gives Right Of Hearing To Accused Before Cognizance Can Apply To Complaint Filed Before July 01, 2024: P&H High Court

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has held that Section 223 of the Bhartiya Nyaya Suraksha Sanhita 2023, which grants the accused right to be heard before cognizance is taken in complaint cases, can apply even to cases instituted prior to July 1, 2024—the date when the BNSS came into force.Section 223 BNSS is pari materia to Section 200 of the erstwhile CrPC except the first proviso to...

Punjab & Haryana High Court Weekly Round Up: August 04 -August 10, 2025

Nominal Index [Citations 311 - 317]Col. Sukhwinder Singh Dhillon v. State of Punjab 2025 LiveLaw (PH) 311CHIRAG KUMAR SARDANA v. STATE OF HARYANA AND ANOTHER 2025 LiveLaw (PH) 312Manish Kumar v. Directorate General, Goods & Service Tax Intelligence, Zonal Unit, Ludhiana 2025 LiveLaw (PH) 313RAVNEET KAUR v. PUNJAB & HARYANA HIGH COURT, CHANDIGARH AND ANOTHER 2025 LiveLaw (PH)...

Punjab & Haryana Bar Council Summons 16 Advocates, Including Seniors, Over Bench Hunting Allegations

In a significant development, the Punjab and Haryana Bar Council has taken cognisance of alleged "bench hunting" tactics employed in the Roop Bansal case. The Council has summoned 16 advocates —Senior Advocate Rakesh Nehra, Senior Advocate Puneet Bali, Advocates J.K. Singla, Sidharth Bhardwaj, Aditya Aggarwal Advocate, Gagandeep Singh, Anmol Chandan, Advocate Baljeet Beniwal, Harsh...

Denying Maternity Leave To Contractual Employee Violates Article 14: Punjab & Haryana High Court

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has said that denying maternity leave to a contractual employee under the Maternity Benefit Act would amount to discrimination on grounds of nature of their employment and thereby violates Article 14 of the Constitution which guarantees equal protection of law.Justice Aman Chaudhary said: "The Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, is a beneficial piece of...