Drug Smuggling Case: SC gives 6 weeks to Punjab govt to file response to Khaira’s plea
Punjab government has been given six weeks by the Supreme Court to respond to state Leader of Opposition and AAP leader Sukhpal Singh Khaira’s plea against a Fazilka court order in a drug smuggling case. Bench headed by Justice NV Ramana had on December 1 stayed the summons and issued notice to the Punjab government. On Friday, it gave six weeks to the state after its counsel sought time to file its reply. It gave two weeks to Khaira to file his rejoinder to the state’s reply. Khaira had also challenged a Punjab and Haryana High Court order rejecting his plea against the summons that required him to appear before the Fazilka court on December 21. “There shall be stay of further proceedings before the trial court,” the bench had said while issuing notice. The Fazilka court had initially issued a non-bailable warrant against the AAP leader in the March 2015 drug smuggling case. On November 30 the Fazilka court had issued fresh summonses to Khaira and four other accused asking them to appear before it on December 21 to record their statements under the NDPS Act. Khaira's personal security officer (PSO) Joga Singh; personal assistant Manish; Charanjit Kaur, a resident of Bath village in Jalandhar; and Major Singh Bajwa of Bajwa Kalan village in Jalandhar were others summoned by the trial court. The Fazilka court had on October 31 sentenced nine people to imprisonment in the trans-border heroin smuggling racket which had surfaced in 2015. -PTC News
