Daijiworld Media Network – Bengaluru
Bengaluru, Jul 1: The Karnataka high court has refused to quash criminal proceedings against a physically challenged travel agent from Mangaluru accused of creating fake documents to help several persons, including a terror suspect wanted by the Andhra Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), obtain or renew passports.
Dismissing the petition filed by U M Haider, a resident of Mangaluru, Justice M Nagaprasanna observed that disability or health issues, though deserving of sympathy on humanitarian grounds, cannot be grounds to avoid criminal prosecution in cases involving national security.
The case is registered at the Mangaluru East police station.
In its order, the court stated that if it is proved that the petitioner, a travel agent, created fake addresses and documents to facilitate a passport for a person suspected of involvement in terrorist activities, the offence would go beyond an ordinary criminal act and would amount to a serious threat to the sovereignty and security of the nation. The court held that Haider must face a full-fledged trial and establish his innocence.
The high court also came down heavily on police constable Laxman, who had verified passport applications. The court noted that nearly 15 passport applications processed through the petitioner's travel agency carried the same address, yet the constable approved them without conducting proper field verification. Describing the conduct as not merely dereliction of duty but a betrayal of public trust, the court said such negligence could not be ignored.
The state government informed the court that sanction had already been sought to initiate legal proceedings against the police constable and that the proposal is pending before the competent authority. The high court directed the State Government to consider the proposal expeditiously and take an appropriate decision.
The court further observed that not only those who directly commit offences against the nation but also those who assist, facilitate, or negligently enable such offences must be brought within the ambit of law. It stressed that whether a person is a citizen, intermediary, or government official, any act or omission that compromises national interest must invite legal consequences.
According to the prosecution, Haider, who was running a travel agency in Puttur taluk, allegedly helped around 15 persons, including Ibrahim Khalil, a most-wanted terror suspect sought by the Andhra Pradesh ATS, by creating fake residential documents and forged educational certificates in Mangaluru. He is also accused of conspiring to deceive the police and ensure successful verification during the passport application process.
Based on the forged documents allegedly created through Haider's agency, passports were issued by the regional passport office in Bengaluru. Following an investigation, Mangaluru East police filed a charge sheet before the trial court against Ibrahim Khalil (A1), Haider (A3), and several others. Haider subsequently approached the high court seeking to quash the criminal proceedings, but his plea has now been rejected.