FARHAN HUSSAIN Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The challenge in these petitions is to the initiation of criminal proceedings inter alia under the provisions of the Foreigners Act, 1946 for the violation of the conditions of VISAS in question; one set of petitioners comprises of foreigners and the other, of native citizens; after service of notice, the respondent-State having entered appearance through the learned SPP has filed a common Statement of Objections resisting the petitions; learned ASG representing the newly added respondent FRRO also opposes the petitions.

(2.) Learned counsel for the petitioners argues that: the initiation of criminal proceedings is on a wrong assumption of a jurisdictional fact namely the nature of VISA; the State is proceeding on a demonstrably wrong premise that the VISAS in question are all Tourist VISAS, when they are not; there is no prohibition for professing and propagating the principles of Tablighi Jamaat in a religious gathering; even otherwise, the Central Govt. has power to relieve the foreigners of the criminal action after accepting the fine amounts in terms of the extant norms and therefore, that benefit needs to be extended to the accused.

(3.) Learned SPP in the Statement of Objections contends that: Tablighi Jamaat is a society of preachers founded by Mohammad Ilyas al-Kandhlawi in Mewat (Haryana), way back in 1926 with the goal to "Revive" Islam through the group of dedicated preachers; Foreign Nationals accused in the case having clandestinely entered India with Tourist Visas and not missionary Visas, have undertaken propagation campaign of Tablighi Principles in religious congregations in breach of Visa conditions and thereby, violated the provisions of Foreigners Act; as many as 960 of such foreigners are blacklisted by the Central Govt. as "Visa violators"; the MHA has directed all the States to prosecute such violators; the petitioners have also violated the provisions of Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897; acting as intentional carriers of highly infected Corona virus, they have spread COVID-19 in India; they have also violated Section 51 of Disaster Management Act and Sections 188, 269, 270 and 271 of IPC..; learned ASG supporting the submission of the learned SPP, contends for the dismissal of petitions so that both the foreigners and the native Indians would face the prosecution for the alleged offences, in accordance with law.