NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday denied the interim bail plea of Amritpal Singh, an accused in a case under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, which pertains to the seizure of 103 kg of heroin by the Immigration Department at the Attari border in April 2022.
The interim bail was sought on the grounds of gallbladder surgery scheduled for his wife, who is a professor. Petitioner Amritpal Singh, a resident of Tarn Taran, Punjab, was detained on December 12, 2023, at the Amritsar Airport while attempting to flee to Dubai. Earlier, a lookout corner notice was issued against him on December 7, 2023. Justice Ravinder Dudeja rejected the interim bail plea, noting the submissions of the advocate Shilpa Singh, counsel for the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
The NIA opposed the plea, submitting that other family members were available to look after the petitioner’s wife, who is a faculty member at Guru Arjan Dev College.
It was further submitted that the family was financially stable. An application for a grant of interim bail was made on the grounds that the wife of the applicant has been advised of a Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy. It was submitted by his counsel that his wife is to be operated upon and the gallbladder is to be removed.
There are two minor children. There is no one to look after his wife, and he has to arrange for the funds for surgery. This submission was opposed by the counsel for NIA, and advocate Shilpa Singh submitted that the family is financially sound, and the patient herself is a professor in the college. She also submitted that the trial is going to commence from tomorrow at the special NIA court in New Delhi. Another accused, Vipin Mitta, was granted bail by the Delhi High Court on May 30, 2023.