JUDGMENT :

The petitioner, a practising advocate, was served with a notice under Section 35 (3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for short ' BNSS '), calling upon him to appear before the investigating officer in a crime in which he represented the accused at the Magistrate Court in a hearing on the bail application - a strange procedure unheard of in criminal investigation.

2. The Njarakkal Police registered a crime as Crime No.157 of 2025 against a husband and wife, alleging that they are Bangladeshi nationals and do not have proper documents to prove their citizenship. It is alleged that the couple fabricated and forged the documents such as their Aadhar Cards, Election Identity Cards, Driving Licence etc., to falsely establish their Indian citizenship and thus committed the offences punishable under Sections 336(2) and 340(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (for short 'BNS'), as well as Sections 14A, 14(b) and 14(c) of the Foreigners Act. The petitioner filed a bail application for the accused before the Judicial First-Class Magistrate Court, Njarakkal. The bail application was dismissed.

3. According to the petitioner, Aadhar Cards, Election Identity Cards,