JUDGMENT :

SUMEET GOEL, J.

1. The present petition has been filed under Section 439 Cr.P.C. seeking grant of regular bail to the petitioner in case FIR No.RC0052025A0015 dated 14.08.2025, registered under Section 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 read with Section 7A of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, at Police Station CBI, ACB, Chandigarh (hereinafter referred to as the ‘FIR in question’).

2. The factual matrix of the case, as borne out from the FIR in Question, is that a written complaint dated 13.08.2025 was submitted by the complainant namely Harsimranjit Singh to the Superintendent of Police, CBI, Chandigarh. It has been alleged in said complaint that the present petitioner, an Advocate practicing at the Punjab & Haryana High Court, demanded illegal gratification of Rs.30,00,000/- for securing a favourable judicial order in a divorce matter pending before the Courts at Bathinda, Punjab, pertaining to the cousin sister of the complainant namely Smt. Sandeep Kaur. It was further alleged that the petitioner demanded the aforesaid amount by claiming to exercise his personal influence over a judicial officer posted at Bathinda and assured that the favourable orders would be procured. The complainant further alleged that the petitioner insisted that the bribe money is never reduced and directed him to arrange the initial amount. On receipt of the complaint, the same was marked to Inspector Sonal Mishra, CBI, ACB, Chandigarh, for verification. The verification was conducted on 13.08.2025 and 14.08.2025, during which telephonic conversations between the complainant and the petitioner were recorded. The verification report prima facie substantiated the allegations of demand of bribe by the petitioner. In the recorded conversation, the petitioner allegedly reiterated the demand of Rs.30,00,000/- and thereby reinforcing the demand and motive. Upon completion of the verification, the present FIR came to be registered on 14.08.2025 under the aforesaid provisions. Thereafter, a trap was laid by the CBI on the same day. During the trap proceedings, the co-accused namely Satnam Singh, allegedly acting at the behest of the petitioner, accepted a sum of Rs.4,00,000/- from the complainant as a part payment of the demanded bribe. The conversation during the transaction was recorded, wherein co-accused namely Satnam Singh allegedly represented himself as a person sent for the collection of money in connection with the said illegal demand. After acceptance of the bribe amount by co-accused Satnam Singh, the petitioner was apprehended from his residence. The petitioner was made to call the co-accused, pursuant to which the bribe amount was recovered from the co-accused Satnam Singh. The petitioner was arrested vide Arrest-cum-Personal Search Memo dated 14.08.2025 and was remanded to judicial custody on 15.08.2025. The petitioner had earlier approached the Court of Special Judge, CBI, Chandigarh, seeking the concession of regular bail. However, the same was dismissed vide order dated 01.09.2025.

It is in this factual backdrop, the present petition has come up for receiving consideration before this Court.

3. Learned senior counsel for the petitioner has iterated that the petitioner has been falsely implicated into the FIR in question and the registration of the FIR in question is the result of a motivated and malicious exercise of power. Learned senior counsel has further iterated that the essential ingredients of Section 7-A of the Prevention of Corruption Act are not satisfied as the petitioner is neither a public servant nor was the alleged judicial officer competent to adjudicate the divorce proceedings in question. Learned senior counsel has emphasized that the alleged demand of illegal gratification has been misconstrued from what was, in fact, the professional fee quoted by the petitioner for conducting litigation at Bathinda, after the successful transfer of the matrimonial case from Sangrur. Learned senior counsel has furthe