The Supreme Court has dismissed the anticipatory bail plea of Indian national shooting coach Ankush Bhardwaj, who faces charges under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for allegedly sexually assaulting a minor trainee.Ankush Bhardwaj allegedly sexually assaulted a 17-year-old national-level woman shooter during a competition-related stay in Faridabad in December last year.A bench, comprising justice JB Pardiwala and justice KV Viswanathan, passed the order on May 27 while hearing Bhardwaj’s special leave petition, which challenged a March 17 order of the Punjab and Haryana high court that had declined him pre-arrest protection.In its brief order, the apex court noted that it found no good ground to interfere with the high court’s decision, subsequently dismissing the petition and disposing of all connected pending applications.During the proceedings, senior advocate Geeta Luthra appeared for Bhardwaj, while the state of Haryana was represented by senior additional advocate general Alok Sangwan.The criminal case against Bhardwaj, a local resident who runs a private shooting academy in Mohali, was registered at a Faridabad police station on January 6 this year after a 17-year-old shooter accused him of sexual assault inside a hotel room.Following the FIR, the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) suspended Bhardwaj, a national-level coach and Commonwealth Youth Games gold medallist. Bhardwaj, who is married to two-time Olympian and Arjuna Award-winning shooter Anjum Moudgil, moved successive courts for protection against arrest.With the Supreme Court now upholding the high court’s refusal to grant him immunity, local investigating agencies are legally cleared to apprehend the coach and proceed with the probe.