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The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Friday directed the Chairperson of the Punjab State Commission for Scheduled Castes to “not interfere by any means whatsoever” in the police investigation into an FIR registered against Congress leader Raja Warring over an alleged remark during campaigning for the Tarn Taran bypoll.
Justice Jasgurpreet Singh Puri passed the interim order after the court viewed a video, placed on record in which the Commission chair is seen questioning the Deputy Superintendent of Police who is investigating the case. The court noted that although it was not commenting on the authenticity of the video, the legal position on investigative independence was clear.
The judge held: “It is a settled law that such kind of statutory authority including that of respondent No. 3 (the chairperson) is not empowered to interfere in the investigation being conducted by the police pursuant to an FIR registered by them.”
Senior advocates Bipan Ghai and P. S. Ahluwalia, appearing for Warring along with Nikhil Ghai and others, told the court that the Congress MP was booked on November 4 under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. The FIR relates to allegations a that he made casteist remarks against former Union Home minister Buta Singh in a speech during the campaign for the November 11 bypoll.
They submitted that while the issue of pre-poll letters issued by the Commission chair to district authorities had become irrelevant after the election, the core grievance was his “direct interference in the investigation process” after the FIR was registered. The counsel argued that the Commission was empowered to conduct its own inquiry under Section 10 of the 2004 Act but “does not have any power to interfere in the investigation process”, which must remain with the police.
The petition relied on the transcript of the video uploaded on November 10, in which the Commission chair is heard seeking the officer’s location, asking about raids and discussing the case. The court recorded the submission that “the tenor of the aforesaid questioning… makes it very clear that there has been a direct intervention in the investigation process.”
The bench was also referred to earlier High Court rulings, including Gurbhej Singh v. State of Punjab (2025), which held that the National Commission for Scheduled Castes had only recommendatory powers and could not interfere in an ongoing police probe. The petitioner’s counsel pointed out that even constitutional courts exercise restraint over investigations, and a statutory commission “cannot have inherent powers to interfere”.
Accepting notice for the state, Additional Advocate General Chanchal Singla was directed to immediately convey the interim order to the Commission and its chair.
The matter will be heard next on December 11.
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