'Respect Army; You Sleep Peacefully Because Of Them' : Supreme Court Affirms CBI Probe Against Punjab Cops Accused Of Assaulting Colonel

The Supreme Court today(August 4) strongly deprecated the conduct of Punjab police officers who were accused of assaulting a serving Army Colonel, Pushpinder Singh Bath and his son. Bath, who was posted at the Army headquarters in New Delhi, alleged that on the night of March 13, four Inspector-rank officers of Punjab Police and their armed subordinates attacked him and his son without any provocation in Punjab. It is the case that both were allegedly beaten up because they refused to move their cars while they were having food at an eatery while travelling from Delhi to Patiala. It is also the case of the Army Officer (the complainant in this case) that no FIR was lodged despite their running from pillar to post because the State was trying to shield its officers. A bench comprising Justice Sanjay Kumar and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma dismissed the special leave petition challenging the High Court of Punjab and Haryana's order directing an investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation ("CBI"). Rejecting the petition filed by the police officers, the Court remarked that the High Court's order is "well-reasoned". Initially, the Court orally said that it was inclined to impose heavy costs, but nevertheless did not impose them while dictating the final order.The Advocate, for the petitioner, submitted that the High Court passed an order in a way which have indicted them even before the trial had begun. Advocate Sumeer Sodhi appeared for the Army Officer. Disagreeing with this, Justice Sharma remarked: "When the war is going on, you glorify these army officers...Your SSP says, I am not able to arrest them in spite of rejection of anticipatory bail because they are police officers...Eight days delay in lodging FIR?! Have respect for Army people. You are sleeping peacefully in your house because that man is serving the border at -40 degrees...We are going to dismiss this with heavy cost. This kind of lawlessness is not acceptable. No legal arguments, nothing is there...Your bail was dismissed, they are roaming freely and they have not been arrested...Let the CBI look into this...They go and defend you, and they come back wrapped in a national flag." Justice Kumar added: "If you have nothing to hide, why do you feel shy of independent inquiry?" Eight days after the FIR was lodged, the complainant, apprehending no fair investigation, approached the High Court, which transferred the investigation to the IPS Officer Manjit, SP, UT, Chandigarh, to conclude within 4 months. Subsequently, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) was formed.Despite this direction, none of the police officers were arrested, and the High Court was compelled to observe that there is no material to show that the investigation is being carried out in a fair manner. It, therefore, directed the investigation to be carried out by CBI via its July 16 order.Justice Rajesh Bhardwaj of the High Court, while directing investigation to CBI, observed: "From the overwhelming circumstances of the case, the Court is convinced that the Investigating Agency is not only trying to create loopholes in the investigation, but trying to make craters in the investigation so as to ensure that once the charge-sheet is filed before the Court, the case of the prosecution should hardly be able to crawl in the Court," it observed.The High Court, while hearing the previous pleas, had pulled up the Punjab Government for the delay in arresting the Punjab Police personnel allegedly involved in the assault.The High Court had also rejected the anticipatory bail of one of the Punjab police personnel, terming the incident "horrific, gut-wrenching incident".Case Details: HARJINDER SINGH DHILLON Vs PUSHPINDER SINGH BATH|D No. 41450/2025 Click Here To Read/Download Order

'Respect Army; You Sleep Peacefully Because Of Them' : Supreme Court Affirms CBI Probe Against Punjab Cops Accused Of Assaulting Colonel

Gursimran Kaur Bakshi

'They go to defend you and come back wrapped in tricolour,' the Court said.

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