Punjab and Haryana High Court issues notices to Punjab government, Orbit over Moga death

NEW DELHI: The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Thursday issued notices to the state chief secretary, the director general of police and Orbit Aviation, a company owned by deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal over the death in Moga of a 13-year-old girl on April 29.

The girl was allegedly molested and thrown off a bus owned by Orbit. The court has taken suo motu notice of the case. A division bench comprising justices Hemant Gupta and Lisa Gill also sought details of bus ownership by the government and private entities and the number of licences issued to private operators in the state. It wants the information submitted by Friday.

Orbit Aviation has been impleaded as a respondent in the public interest litigation. The court has appointed advocates HC Arora and Rajvinder Singh Bains as amicus curiae (friends of the court) to assist the HC in the matter. The bench refused to entertain the plea of the AAP, which wanted to become a party in the matter.