New Delhi: In a major reprieve for Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia, the Supreme Court on Monday granted him regular bail in a corruption case involving alleged disproportionate assets worth over ₹540 crore.
The Bench, comprising Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta, questioned the State of Punjab's rationale for continued incarceration, asking, "Why do you want to keep him inside jail?" given that the chargesheet has already been filed.
Majithia, a former Cabinet Minister, has been under the scanner of Punjab agencies for years.
- 2021 (NDPS Case): Initially booked under the NDPS Act for alleged involvement in a drug racket. He was granted bail in this case in August 2022, which the Supreme Court upheld in 2025.
- 2025 (Corruption Case): A Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the drug case later flagged suspicious financial transactions. Based on this, the Punjab Vigilance Bureau registered a fresh FIR in 2025 under the Prevention of Corruption Act, alleging that Majithia and his associates accumulated assets worth ₹540 crore—grossly disproportionate to their known sources of income between 2007 and 2017.
Senior Advocate Dr. S. Muralidhar, appearing for Majithia, argued that the new FIR was merely a "political offshoot" of the previous NDPS case. He highlighted that the investigation was effectively over, with a massive 40,000-page chargesheet already filed.
On the other hand, Senior Advocate Siddharth Dave, representing the Punjab Government, contended that this was a serious economic offense involving complex money trails through Cyprus and Singapore.
The Supreme Court, however, was inclined to grant liberty. The Bench noted several key factors:
- Period of Offence: The alleged assets were acquired between 2007-2017, but the FIR was registered only in 2025.
- Custody: Majithia has already been in custody for 7 months.
- Completion of Probe: The police report (chargesheet) under Section 173(2) is already filed, meaning custodial interrogation is no longer required.
"We are inclined to grant bail... It would be open for prosecution to impress upon trial court to impose stringent conditions," the Court ordered.
For Punjab politics, this is a significant development. Majithia has consistently claimed that the cases against him are driven by "political vendetta" by the ruling dispensation. By granting bail, the Supreme Court has reiterated that "bail is the rule, jail is the exception," even in high-stakes corruption cases, provided the investigation isn't hampered.