Death of MBBS student: ‘Drunken driving a grave menace to public safety’, says Punjab and Haryana HC as it denies bail to truck driver

The case stems from a tragic incident on October 31, 2023, on the Sangrur-Patiala Road near Prabhlahan flyover. According to the police report registered at a police station in Patiala district, the petitioner was allegedly driving a speeding truck while heavily intoxicated.

The complainant, Jagmail Singh, a retired teacher, said he and his 24-year-old son, Arshdeep Singh, a student of the government medical college in Patiala, had stopped their car on the roadside to urinate. As the son opened the car door to get back in, the truck rammed into the parked vehicle from behind, crushing the young man under its wheels and killing him instantly. The truck stopped a short distance away, and onlookers caught the driver, who identified himself before fleeing the scene, leaving his vehicle behind. The complainant alleged that the accident resulted from the driver’s “reckless and intentional act” under the influence of liquor.

The accused has been in custody since November 1, 2023, nearly one year and 10 months. This was his third attempt to secure regular bail. His previous petitions were dismissed as withdrawn in January and May 2025. The charge sheet has been presented, but none of the prosecution witnesses have been examined yet, with the trial expected to take considerable time.

In his plea, the accused’s counsel argued that the petitioner is a senior citizen (around 68 at the time of the incident) and was falsely implicated, claiming he was not the driver. He contended that pre-trial detention amounts to undue hardship, as every accused is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Opposing the bail, the state counsel argued that the allegations are serious, involving drunken driving that led to the death of a promising young student.

Justice Goel dismissed the petition. Launching a scathing critique of drunken driving, he observed, “The offence of drunken driving cannot be viewed in isolation as a mere act of mischief or lapse on the part of the offender. It constitutes a grave menace to public safety and strikes at the very root of societal order. A person who chooses to drive under the influence of alcohol does not merely endanger his own life but recklessly imperils the lives of innocent citizens using the road. The act, by its very nature, creates a potential for fatal accidents, loss of invaluable human lives, and serious bodily injuries apart from damage to property — by creating a hazardous situation on public roads, undermining the very fabric of public safety and order.”

The judge further noted that the law mandates strict treatment of such offences, and any leniency extended in such cases would send a wrong signal and embolden others to indulge in similar hazardous conduct.

Justice Goel stressed the need for deterrence, stating that granting bail casually in such matters “would not only dilute the seriousness of the offence but also have a deleterious effect of encouraging similar reckless conduct.”

He also cited a recent Supreme Court ruling, which held that mere filing of a charge sheet or a lengthy witness list does not justify bail, especially when outweighed by the offence’s gravity.

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