Haryana Govt Appoints Harassment Accused Vikas Barala as Asst. Advocate General

The Varnika Kundu stalking case against Vikas Barala, son of BJP leader Subhash Barala, is still going on.

Varnika Kundu (R) and Vikas Barala (L).

(Photo: The Quint)

Vikas Barala, accused in the 2017 Chandigarh harassment case and son of senior BJP leader Subhash Barala, has been appointed Assistant Advocate General by the Haryana government.

As per an official notification dated 18 July, issued by the Justice Department, Vikas is among the 97 new appointments to the posts of Additional Advocate General, Senior Deputy Advocate General, Deputy Advocate General, and Assistant Advocate General for the state of Haryana.

A Brief Timeline of The Case

Vikas, along with his friend Ashish Kumar, was booked on 5 August 2017 under Sections 354D (stalking), 341 (wrongful restraint), 365 (attempt to abduct), and IPC 511, along with charges related to drunk driving. The complaint was filed by Varnika Kundu, daughter of former Haryana IAS officer VS Kundu, who alleged that the duo chased and tried to forcibly enter her vehicle late at night in Chandigarh.

The case, registered as FIR No. 156 at Police Station Sector 26, saw widespread public outrage at the time. Charges were framed on 13 October 2017 but the trial remains pending to this day, with the next hearing now listed for 2 August 2025, for the recording of defence evidence.

‘My Faith in Judiciary is Wavering’: Varnika Kundu

Varnika Kundu, the complainant in Vikas’s case, told The Quint that developments like these are wavering her faith in the Indian Judiciary.

“While my hope for justice is still alive, I must say that my faith in the judiciary is wavering. There are questions that the state of Haryana must answer,” she said.

(The Quint reached out to Vikas Barala and Subhash Barala for a comment. This report will be updated when we get a response.)