TARA SINGH Vs. STATE OF DELHI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) On 5.5.1999 at 3.00 p.m. Alpana Sharma, PW2 Section Officer in the Afghan Section of the FISR Branch of the FRRO, Hans Bhawan, New Delhi lodged a complaint with PS IP Estate. It was alleged that one Afghani national had approached her along with his passport for the grant of an exit visa. On the scrutiny of his passport No.OR-387146 dated 14.9.1997, issued at Nangartain, Afghanistan, it revealed that he i.e. Tara Singh had entered India on 8.4.1999 on the strength of visa No.995502 issued on 6.4.1999 from Islamabad, Pakistan. This visa was valid till 5.10.1999 with the condition of entry by train and being an entry visa, it meant that he required either an exit visa or a re-entry visa in order to visit Pakistan. A further scrutiny of his passport revealed that there was a re-entry visa issued from Peshawar; this was a forged visa as Pakistani visas had since been changed from rubber stamp type to sticker type visas and this was evident from page No.17 which contained the rubber stamp visa and pages No. 15 and 13 of his passport which contained the sticker type visa. Preliminary questions revealed that the petitioner had obtained this forged visa from an agent at Tilak Nagar area to gain entry in Pakistan. These facts had been notified by PW2 to her senior officer Shri Arvind Kapoor PW3, who confirmed these revelations. Request for registration of FIR under Sections 468/471/420/120B IPC r/w Section 14 of the Foreigners Act (in short the Act) was made.

(2.) On the aforestated complaint investigation was set into motion. After scrutiny of the documents and the recording of the disclosure statement of the accused as also the statement of the witnesses FIR under the aforestated provisions of law was registered at 5.15 p.m. on the same day.

(3.) Vide judgment dated 25.8.2000, accused Tara Singh was convicted under Section 14 of the Act. He was sentenced to suffer RI for a period of 1 years as also to pay a fine of Rs.3,000. This order was modified by the Court of the learned ASJ. While upholding the conviction, the sentence was modified to the sentence already undergone by the appellant i.e. the period of 35 days of incarceration suffered by him. The fine of Rs.3,000 stood already deposited. The petitioner was directed to leave the country within 10 days from the date of the judgment i.e. within 10 days from 5.3.2001.