Sikh News

Baba Daduwal’s kin moves heabus corpus in High Court; Notice to state over re-arrest

October 11, 2014 | By Sikh Siyasat Bureau

Chandigarh/ Faridkot: A day after the police took Sikh preacher Baba Baljit Singh Daduwal into preventive custody after his release from Faridkot Jail, the Punjab and Haryana High Court issued a notice to the state government on heabus corpus moved by Baba Daduwal’s father in law. Daduwal was to be released from the Faridkot Central Jail as he had secured bail from the High Court. But immediately after his release on October 09, the police took him into preventive custody claiming that “he was an imminent threat to peace”.

He was produced before a duty magistrate inside the Faridkot jail, who sent him to judicial custody till October 16.

While the government officials claimed Daduwal was sent into judicial custody as he declined to submit surety bail bonds, his father-in-law Gurmit Singh (in the writ petition) alleged that the police did not allow him to tender the bonds.

Baba Daduwal was in custody since August 21.

A news reported by The Tribune (TT) says [t]o prove Daduwal as an “imminent threat”, the police relied upon video clips of the huge gathering of his supporters outside the side. The police alleged Daduwal and his supporters had planned to forcibly take the possession of a Gurdwara in Jandialisar village in Bathinda, which would have triggered clashes with the residents. As such, he was re-arrested under Section 107 and 151 of the CrPC.

Harjit Singh Sandhu, Sub-Divisional Magistrate-cum-duty magistrate, said there was no violation of rules in arresting and sending Daduwal to judicial custody. “

Though the offence under Section 107 and 151 of the CrPC is bailable, Bab Daduwal was sent into judicial custody as he refused to tender the surety bail bonds,” said Sandhu.

But Advocate Gurvinder Singh Sidhu, appearing for Baba Baljit Singh Daduwal in the High Court, alleged the administration violated the High Court ruling issued when the religious leaders and 20 of his supporters were arrested in a similar manner on April 11 last year.

As the police were using preventive custody as a tool to put Baba Daduwal in jail time and again, the High Court had issued directions to the district magistrates not to abuse this process of law, claimed Sidhu.

“After I came to know about Baljit Singh Daduwal’s arrest yesterday, I informed Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Tayyab and Senior Superintendent of Police SS Kahlon about the High Court’s order. I even sent them text messages that the arrest was a violation of the court order. But they did not bother,” he said.

The Deputy Commissioner feigned ignorance about having received any such text message.

“As Daduwal is a victim of political rivalry between the Badal Dal-INLD on one side and the Congress on the other in Haryana, we had demanded the High Court to order his release from illegal custody,” said Sidhu.

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Related Topics: Punjab and Haryana High Court

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