The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected an appeal filed by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) challenging the bail granted to Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira. The case against Khaira, registered in 2015 under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, has been a subject of ongoing legal battles.

A bench comprising Justices Bela M Trivedi and KV Viswanathan decided not to interfere with the Punjab and Haryana High Court's order issued on January 4. The High Court had granted bail to Khaira in the NDPS Act case as well as the Arms Act. However, before his release from prison, the Punjab Police arrested him in a fresh case under Sections 195A (threatening any person to give false evidence) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code.

Khaira's initial arrest took place in September of the previous year from his Chandigarh residence in connection with an eight-year-old NDPS Act case. The case, registered in March 2015 at Jalalabad in Fazilka, implicated nine individuals, including Gurdev Singh, reportedly a close aide of Khaira. The chargesheet alleged that Khaira was closely associated with Gurdev Singh, the leader of the Fazilka drug smuggling racket, and accused him of sheltering the alleged perpetrator.

The primary accusations against Khaira included supporting an international gang of smugglers, providing shelter to Gurdev Singh, and receiving financial benefits from drug traffickers. Khaira was also accused of enjoying the proceeds of crime. These allegations led to his arrest last year, prompting a political clash with the Congress labeling it as vindictive politics by AAP, while the latter asserted it was part of their "zero-tolerance policy" against drugs.

The legal saga took a turn on February 16, 2023, when a Supreme Court bench consisting of Justices BR Gavai and Vikram Nath quashed the summoning order against Khaira in the drugs case. Despite the seriousness of the allegations, the recent decision by the Supreme Court indicates a reluctance to interfere with the High Court's order granting bail to the Congress MLA.