Delhi court grants bail to man accused of running illegal visa racket

New Delhi:A Delhi court has granted bail to a man arrested for allegedly running an illegal visa racket, noting that no one victim had come forward to file a complaint against him.

Vacation Judge Shailender Malik granted relief to accused Nanda Ballab Joshi, noting that while 32 passports were recovered from his possession, he was admittedly running a tour and travel agency. "It is also not the case of the prosecution that passports recovered from the possession of the accused were fake, rather (they are) found to be genuine.

"It is also admitted position that none came forward to give the complaint regarding alleged fake visa having been given or provided by the accused," the judge said in an order passed on December 30. The judge also noted that the accused was in judicial custody since November 26, 2022 and was no longer required for custodial interrogation or investigation.

"In such circumstances, I am of the view that the accused is entitled to bail," the judge said. The judge, however, directed the accused not to leave the country without its prior permission. He will not try to influence witnesses or tamper with evidence in any manner, the courts said.

Joshi had claimed in his application that he was falsely implicated in the case and that there was no evidence of any forgery or cheating having been committed by him. He submitted that 32 passports recovered by police were genuine.

He noted that the prosecution did not record statements of any aggrieved person or complainant regarding alleged fake visas, etc. He contended that the co-­accused in the case, Baldev Raj and Kuldeep Singh, have already been granted bail and his case is also on the same footing.

The prosecution opposed the bail application on the grounds that during the investigation, a large number of account statements of different persons and different bank statements were found that were "false" and 32 passports were recovered from the possession of the accused. According to the prosecution, the accused was arrested on the allegation of running a racket of forged visas of different countries on November 25, 2022 from a shop in Connaught Place here.