CBI Chargesheet Filed Against 4 Punjab Cops in Colonel Assault Case

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The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a chargesheet against four Punjab Police officers in connection with the alleged assault on Colonel Pushpinder Singh Bath in March. The chargesheet was filed in a Mohali court against Inspector Ronnie Singh and three other officers. This development comes nearly five months after the Punjab and Haryana High Court transferred the probe into the case to the CBI in July. According to sources, the alleged incident occurred on the night of March 13 and 14 when Colonel Bath and his son were having food at a roadside dhaba in Patiala. Colonel Bath accused some Punjab Police personnel of assaulting him and his son over a parking dispute. He alleged that the assailants, including four inspector-rank officers and their armed subordinates, attacked them without provocation, snatched his ID card and mobile phone, and threatened him with a 'fake encounter' in public view and under CCTV camera coverage. Colonel Bath suffered a broken arm, while his son had a cut on his head in the incident. The colonel had previously expressed concerns about a fair investigation being impossible under the Punjab Police. In April, the high court transferred the probe into the assault case to the Chandigarh Police, but later transferred it to the CBI in July after Colonel Bath sought an independent probe. The CBI re-registered two FIRs filed by the Civil Lines police station in Patiala as its own separate cases, with one from Colonel Bath's side and the other from the dhaba owner. The FIRs were filed under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code.