A Mohali court on Tuesday heard the disproportionate assets case against Shiromani Akali Dal leader and former Punjab minister Bikram Singh Majithia, but charges have not been framed yet. The court has scheduled the next hearing for January 3, while the process of framing charges is expected to begin in 2026.
The Punjab Vigilance Department filed a chargesheet in the case on August 22, submitting extensive material to the court. The chargesheet runs into more than 40,000 pages and was presented in four trunks. Over 200 witnesses have been cited by the Vigilance Department in support of its allegations.
Meanwhile, Majithia has moved the Supreme Court seeking bail after being denied relief by the High Court. His bail plea is scheduled to be heard on January 19. Majithia was arrested by the Vigilance Bureau from his Amritsar residence on June 25 in connection with allegations that he accumulated assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.
So far, statements of six individuals have been recorded in the case, including former Punjab Director General of Police Siddharth Chattopadhyay and a former deputy director of the Enforcement Directorate. Raids have also been conducted at Majithia’s properties across Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, and Uttar Pradesh.
While the state government claims to possess strong evidence, Majithia’s legal team has dismissed the case as politically motivated and without merit. Notably, a separate case under the NDPS Act was registered against him in 2021 during the Congress government’s tenure.