Default bail sought for Jyoti Malhotra; Lawyer cites incomplete investigation in court

August 30, 2025

The hearing of the case of Jyoti Malhotra, who was arrested on suspicion of spying for Pakistan, was held in the court of Civil Judge Sunil Kumar. There was a debate on giving a copy of the charge sheet to Jyoti Malhotra.

The government lawyer in the court said that the investigation is not yet complete. In such a situation, giving sensitive information can affect the investigation. Therefore, intelligence information should not be given to the accused.

Jyoti’s lawyer has filed a petition for default bail (statutory bail) based on this point, on which the court has sought a reply from the police on Saturday.

In the court on Friday, Jyoti Malhotra’s lawyer Kumar Mukesh said that the police have not yet completed the investigation. According to the Indian Judicial Code, the police had to complete the investigation against Jyoti Malhotra on August 14. On August 14, the police had submitted an incomplete charge sheet. Jyoti has not been given a copy of the charge sheet yet.

In such cases, the Supreme Court has ordered that in case of an incomplete police investigation, the accused has the right to bail, a copy of which has been submitted to the court. If the court had wanted, it could have given default bail even without hearing the police’s side. In this case, the police had presented an incomplete charge sheet, due to which the court has given the police a chance to present its side.

The entire challan must be given…
Jyoti’s lawyer Kumar Mukesh, citing Section 7 of 193, said that we cannot give the entire charge sheet. The police presented the challan on August 14, 11 days after that, on August 25, they gave an application that they cannot give the entire charge sheet. What is the meaning of this application after 11 days? The police should have given the application on the same day. Citing the Official Secrets Act, the police cannot refuse to give documents. The police should give us copies of both the challans, so that we can prepare our reply.