Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The Madhya Pradesh High Court principal bench in Jabalpur has granted anticipatory bail to Aishbag Station House Officer (SHO) Jitendra Garhwal, who was implicated in a case under the Prevention of Corruption (PC) Act.

The case also involves Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Pawan Raghuvanshi, who was caught accepting a bribe of approximately Rs 5 lakh.

The court's decision came on Saturday, with Justice Maninder S Bhatti passing the order.

The anticipatory bail application was filed in connection with an FIR registered on January 25, 2025, at Aishbag police station.

The case was lodged under Sections 7, 13(1)(b), and 13(2) of the PC Act, along with Section 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Senior advocate Ajay Mishra, representing the applicant, argued that the FIR itself suggests the bribe amount of Rs4.95 lakh was recovered from the co-accused (ASI Pawan Raghuvanshi), who claimed he was instructed to collect it on behalf of SHO Jitendra Garhwal.

The defence maintained that the prosecution’s case is suspicious, questioning why the police arrested the ASI but not the SHO at the time of recovery. Mishra said that Garhwal was falsely implicated based on a mere memorandum and deserved anticipatory bail.