Chandigarh, Jan. 17 -- The Punjab and Haryana high court on Friday sought response from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on a plea by suspended DIG Harcharan Singh Bhullar for bail in the corruption case registered by the agency on October 16 last year. On January 2, the trial court in Chandigarh had rejected his bail plea observing that "the case constitutes a class apart being an alarming economic offence". Subsequently, Bhullar approached the high court for bail on January 9. Taking up his plea on Friday, the high court bench of justice Sumeet Goel directed CBI to file a response by February 9, the next date of hearing. In his plea, Bhullar has stated that the investigation had concluded and the challan was presented by CBI on January 3, thereby rendering further custodial interrogation "wholly unnecessary". It has been further argued that the prosecution proposed to examine predominantly official witnesses, and the petitioner had been suspended from service, eliminating any plausible apprehension of influencing witnesses or tampering with evidence. The plea also raises arguments about jurisdictional issues - CBI action against an officer serving in Punjab. The application says the petitioner has spent substantial period of time inside jail in a case wherein if convicted, he would get a maximum of seven years imprisonment. Hence, his continuous incarceration would amount to punitive detention before trial, contrary to the settled principles governing bail. Bhullar, 59, and middleman Krishanu Sharda, 29, a national-level hockey player, were arrested on October 16 following a complaint filed by Akash Batta, a scrap dealer from Mandi Gobindgarh. During a subsequent search at Bhullar's Sector 40 home, CBI had seized around Rs.7.5 crore in cash, gold and silver jewellery worth Rs.2.32 crore, 22 luxury watches, multiple luxury vehicles, 40 litres of imported liquor, and documents for 129 acres of agricultural land, numerous urban properties in Patiala, Ludhiana, Mohali and New Chandigarh, and 50 commercial shops at Machhiwara, Ludhiana. Bhullar has been lodged in Model Jail, Chandigarh, since his arrest three months ago. CBI had also registered a separate case of disproportionate assets against him in which chargesheet has yet to be filed. He secured a bail in that case on January 5....