Chandigarh, Aug. 1 -- The Punjab and Haryana high court has dismissed bail pleas of former CBI DSP Balbir Singh and Shimla enforcement directorate assistant director Vishal Deep, in the scholarship scam reported in Himachal Pradesh.

"This court is conscious of the settled principle that bail is the rule and jail is the exception. However, in cases involving public trust, corruption, and institutional breach by law enforcing officers, such exceptions must be tempered by the imperative to preserve the integrity of the process and prevent any likelihood of tampering with evidence or witnesses, especially when the complainants are yet to be examined," the bench of justice Manjari Nehru Kaul said while dismissing the pleas.

The bribery alleg...