HC sword 'assault': Court questions UT Police probe
Chandigarh, Sept. 28 -- A chief judicial magistrate (CJM) court has raised questions about the UT Police move to invoke attempt to murder section in a case where advocate Simranjit Singh Blassi was booked for allegedly brandishing a sword on the Punjab and Haryana high court complex and assaulting members of the Bar association on September 17.
While granting bail to Blassi on September 20, CJM Sachin Yadav observed that the medical evidence and videos produced during the probe did not support the allegations of attempted murder. The medical report of the complainant, advocate Palak Dev, showed no specific injury, and the column for "weapon used" was left blank. The medical examination of injured advocate Sutikshan Sharma recorded only two abrasions, which the court said could not, prima facie, be attributed to a sword attack.
The court also noted that several videos of the incident were presented by the investigating officer. In one clip, Blassi could be seen pushing a male advocate once, after which he was beaten by several members of the bar. In none of the videos was he seen using a sword to attack anyone, except in one clip where he was walking outside the high court with a sword on his shoulder. The court stated that this, prima facie, does not show the ingredients of Section 109 (attempt to murder) of the BNS.
"There is no document on the case file submitted by the investigating officer which could fulfil the ingredients of Section 109 of the BNS. All the other offenses, i.e., 115(2), 126(2), and 351(2), are bailable in nature," the court said. The court also recorded that complainant Palak Dev and injured advocate Sutikshan Sharma told that Blassi's family had approached the chief justice of the HC and bar president, citing his unstable medical condition. Both Palak and Sutikshan stated that since Blassi is a member of the legal fraternity, they did not wish to pursue the complaint and FIR against him and had no objection to his bail.
Blassi, a resident of Ferozepur, was arrested on September 17. Advocate Ravneet Kaur was also named in the FIR following a quarrel with library staff. The case was registered under multiple sections of the BNS
The initial complaint was lodged by advocate Palak Dev against both Blassi and advocate Ravneet Kaur. According to the FIR, Kaur was allegedly quarreling with library staff on September 17 when Dev intervened. Blassi, who was with Kaur, allegedly began to argue with Dev while carrying a sword. The altercation continued later outside a courtroom where Kaur's matter was being heard. Dev alleged that Blassi threatened to kill them and attempted to attack her, but another advocate, Sutikshan, intervened and was injured on his arm and finger....
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