In a serious case of alleged police brutality, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has rejected the pre-arrest bail plea of Punjab Police officer Ronnie Singh Salh, accused of brutally assaulting Army Colonel Pushpinder Singh Bath and his son.
The incident occurred on the night of March 13 in Patiala. Colonel Bath, currently posted in New Delhi, was with his son Angad Singh when they stopped at a roadside dhaba. While they were eating, a vehicle with police blinkers arrived, and several men in civilian clothes got out and started threatening them over the parking of their car.
"It is a horrific, gut-wrenching incident showcasing complete misuse of police power,"
— Justice Anoop Chitkara
The FIR states that after Colonel Bath identified himself, he was punched, kicked, and severely beaten along with his son. Even after revealing his Army identity card, the violence continued. His son pleaded for mercy but was also assaulted.
Medical reports from Rajendra Hospital confirmed both simple and grievous injuries, including fractures. CCTV footage from the dhaba corroborated the version of events and showed no police officer trying to stop the assault.
"Not even a single police officer came forward to break up the fight or stop their colleagues,"
— Punjab & Haryana High Court
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The Court further observed that a serious attempt was made to cover up the matter. An FIR against the Colonel and his son was registered the next day on the complaint of a constable. In contrast, their own FIR for assault was only registered eight days later, after public outrage.
“This episode is more worrisome due to the delay in registering the proper FIR,”
— Justice Chitkara remarked
The Court criticized the accused officers for trying to manipulate medical records by going to a private hospital rather than a government one. It also questioned why senior police officers delayed action despite knowing the complainant was a serving Army officer.
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"Even if victims parked wrongly, the police should have issued a challan, not assaulted them,"
— Punjab & Haryana High Court
The Court emphasized that the job of the police is to enforce law respectfully, not to instill fear among citizens through violent means.
“The conduct of the police shows a cruel, inhumane mindset which does not represent our democratic nation,”
— Court noted in its judgment
The petitioner's claim of provocation was also dismissed as baseless. The Court found no reason to grant anticipatory bail and ordered that custodial interrogation was necessary to ensure fair investigation and protection of witnesses.
“This kind of brutality by police towards even an Army Colonel is not only against one man but the entire nation,”
— Justice Anoop Chitkara
The High Court concluded that such officers do not deserve the benefit of anticipatory bail and that strong judicial action is required to maintain public trust and protect the dignity of every citizen.
Status: Petition Dismissed
Mr. Vinod Ghai, Senior Advocate with Mr. GPS Ghuman, Advocate,
Mr. G.S. Ghuman, Advocate, Mr. Arnav Ghai, Advocate and
Mr. R.S. Bagga, Advocate for the petitioner.
Mr. Manish Bansal, P.P., U.T., Chandigarh with Mr. Alankrit Bhardwaj, Addl. P.P. and
Ms. Navreet Kaur Barnala, AAG, Punjab.
Mr. P.S. Ahluwalia, Advocate,
Mr. Veer Vikram Singh Mann, Advocate and Mr. Harjot Waraich, Advocate for the complainant.
Title: Ronnie Singh Salh v. State of Punjab
