M A I N   N E W S

Kamaljit to move SC on Nov 20  
Grant of bail to Bibi Jagir Kaur
Tribune News Service

NEW DELHI, Nov 18 — Kamaljit Singh, the person who claims to have married Harpreet Kaur, the daughter of the SGPC chief Bibi Jagir Kaur, a prime accused in the murder of her daughter, would move the Supreme Court on Monday seeking cancellation of the bail granted to her by the Punjab and Haryana High Court and to prevent her from influencing the witnesses.

“The appeal against the High Court verdict is being filed to prevent the SGPC Chief to tamper the evidence or hamper the investigation and to prevent her from influencing the witnesses,” sources close to Kamaljit Singh told The Tribune.

Kamaljit’s counsel, Ms Indu Malhotra, said “We are questioning the basis on which the High Court granted Bibi Jagir Kaur anticipatory bail. The High Court could at best have granted a conditional anticipatory bail to facilitate her appearance before the CBI for interrogation,” Ms Malhotra said.

Bibi Jagir Kaur who had allegedly influenced the witness came out sharply when two witnesses, Dr Tarsem Singh and Prof Jaswant Singh under oath retracted the statement given to the CBI.

They had stated under oath that they had given statement to the CBI at the behest of the SGPC Chief.

Dr Tarsem Singh had stated to the CBI that he had examined Harpreet Kaur on April 20 and declared her dead on way to Christian Medical College, Ludhiana. The doctor had also stated that prof Jaswant Singh was also there when he examined the daughter of the SGPC President.

Retracting from his earlier statement to the CBI, Dr Singh, in his statement under section 164 CrPC, to the Judicial Magistrate Mr Gulshan Kumar said that “he and Prof Jaswant Singh did not visit the residence of Dalwinder Kaur Dhesi on April 20, the night Harpreet died there.”

Dr Singh further stated that he did not examine Harpreet Kaur nor did he declare her dead.

He admitted that he had given wrong statements earlier during the preliminary inquiry conducted by the CBI at the behest of Bibi Jagir Kaur, who asked him to say that he visited the residence of Mrs Dalwinder Kaur at Phagwara on April 20, examined Harpreet Kaur and informed Bibi who was in Chandigarh about her serious condition on phone and declared her dead on way to CMC, Ludhiana.

Prof Jaswant Singh had also made a similar statement before the Judicial Magistrate on October 18, 2000.

Meanwhile, the SGPC Chief, who attended the wedding of the daughter of DSGMC president Avtar Singh Hit at Delhi’s Gurdwara Rakab Ganj, left for Punjab this afternoon.

She is expected to attend the Political Affairs Committee of the SAD scheduled to be held on November 21.

Bibi Jagir Kaur, who appeared before the CBI for interrogation on Friday, told a select group of newspersons that she would respect the decision of the PAC meeting.

“I would respect the decision of the PAC headed by the Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal. I am myself a PAC member. The Harpreet death case is my personal matter.”

She said “I have always respected the law and would continue to do so in the future as well. But I would not silently accept injustice delivered to me at any point of time and will give a tough legal fight.”

Bibi Jagir Kaur, however, did not disclose what transpired between her and the CBI official yesterday.

Bibi Jagir Kaur was granted anticipatory bail by the High Court on November 15, but directed her to appear before the CBI in Delhi on November 17. A Patiala Court had rejected her anticipatory bail plea on November 13.

Kamaljeet, on whose petition, a CBI probe was ordered into Harpreet’s death, had claimed that he married the girl and fathered her child which was allegedly aborted.

The agency in its FIR had named seven person, including Bibi Jagir Kaur for involvement in the mysterious death of Harpreet Kaur. But in the amended FIR on November 13, the CBI charged them for murder of the 19-year-old girl. All the other six accused are in custody.