Chandigarh, Sept. 6 -- A local court on Friday dismissed the plea of Chandigarh Police crime branch seeking seven days' custody of Ganesh, an accused in multiple cases of impersonation and fraud, citing concerns of custodial torture and conflict of interest in the investigation. Ganesh Bhatt, a resident of Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand, was produced in the court following his arrest on charges of posing as an army officer and duping people. The police had sought remand to recover incriminating material including an army uniform from Jaipur, a mobile phone from Gurugram, and a gold ring allegedly obtained through fraudulent means. The investigating officer also argued that Ganesh's disclosure statement indicated the involvement of other co-accused and the existence of objectionable videos of minor girls. However, defence counsel opposed the remand plea, alleging that the accused had suffered severe custodial assault, was unable to speak and hear, and was denied timely medical care. The defence also pointed out that Ganesh had earlier approached the Punjab and Haryana high court against senior police officials, including SP (Crime) Jasbir Singh and inspector Satwinder Singh of the crime branch, accusing them of harassment. The high court had directed the Haryana DGP to decide his representation by September 3, 2025, but no order has been passed so far. Observing that allowing the crime branch, which is itself under a cloud of allegations, to continue probing the matter would be against the principles of natural justice, the court refused to grant police custody. "If the police custody of the accused is again granted to the same police station against which allegations were levied and the inquiry is still pending, prejudice will be caused to the fundamental rights of the accused," the order stated. During the hearing, the court took note of a supplementary statement given by lady constable Manpreet Kaur, the complainant in the case, in which she alleged that inspector Ashok Kumar, a senior police officer earlier posted with the crime branch, was also involved in fraudulent activities. Kumar has since been transferred to the IRB battalion at Sarangpur. The court directed Chandigarh DGP to submit a report by September 6, 2025, on whether the investigation should be transferred to another police station, excluding the crime branch and the police station where the complainant is posted. The court further ordered that Ganesh be sent to judicial custody in Burail jail until the next hearing. Additionally, the court called for the accused's medical report and the preservation status of CCTV footage from government hospital, Sector 16, where he claimed to have been denied treatment. Ganesh has a history of impersonating army officials and has previously been arrested in 2021 and 2023 for duping youth in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. The latest FIR against him was lodged on June 16, 2025, at police station Sector-11, Chandigarh, under Sections 318 and 319 of the Bharatiya NyayaSanhita (BNS)....