Police have booked former MLA and senior advocate Harish Rai Dhanda, a senior leader of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), and his son Chandan Dhanda for allegedly assaulting fellow advocate Sanjiv Malhotra following a monetary dispute at the court complex.

The FIR was registered on Saturday, nearly eight months after Malhotra had submitted a complaint and after he approached the Punjab and Haryana high court.

According to Malhotra’s complaint, he had a monetary dispute with Dhanda. On January 16, he saw Dhanda, his son, other aides and security personnel in the parking lot of the court complex and approached Dhanda seeking repayment of the money.

Malhotra alleged that Dhanda, his son and the others accompanying them then assaulted him and snatched his gold chain before leaving the spot after threatening him. He said he submitted a complaint to the police the same day, but no action was taken.

According to Malhotra, he then approached the Punjab and Haryana high court.

The police registered the FIR on Saturday, two days before the next hearing in the case, under sections 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt), 126(2) (wrongful restraint) and 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Malhotra further alleged that Dhanda’s previous positions as an MLA, chief parliamentary secretary and chairman of the Bar Council had contributed to the police’s reluctance to act against him. He also claimed that he had attached a video of the alleged assault to his complaint, but the FIR was registered only after eight months.

Dhanda, however, refuted the allegations and said the police had already given him a clean chit in the matter. He claimed that Malhotra had filed a writ petition in the high court and that the FIR was registered against him under pressure.

ASI Malkit Singh, who is investigating the case, said the FIR was registered following a detailed investigation.