Singer Daler Mehndi was arrested by the Patiala Police for his involvement in a human trafficking case, on July 14, 2022. (Express Photo by Harmeet Sodhi)The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Wednesday issued a notice to the state of Punjab over the revision petition filed by singer Daler Mehndi, challenging the orders of trial court which convicted him in an immigration fraud case registered in 2003.
The matter came up for hearing before the Bench of Justice Gurvinder Singh Gill. The HC issued the notice, to be replied to by September 15, regarding suspension of sentence of imprisonment as well.
On July 14, Mehndi was arrested and sent to jail after a Patiala court dismissed his appeal against a two-year jail term awarded to him in the immigration fraud case. The court of judicial magistrate Nidhi Saini had sentenced Mehndi to two years in jail in March 2018, after holding him guilty under sections 420 (cheating) and 120-B (conspiracy). Mehndi, who had secured bail, had challenged the order in the court of Additional Sessions Judge H S Grewal.
An FIR was registered in the matter on September 19, 2003, at Patiala Sadar police station after the complainant alleged that Mehndi and other accused had cheated him of Rs 13 lakh on the pretext of sending him to Canada.
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In the HC, Mehndi, through senior advocate R S Cheema and advocate Arshdeep Singh Cheema, has sought that he be acquitted of the charges in the interest of justice.
The petitioner’s counsel argued that the failure of the trial judge to objectively examine the material on record has resulted in injustice. It is an unfortunate case where due to the voluminous record, the courts below did not minutely examine the evidence.
The petitioner submitted that the trial court has in a mechanical manner relied upon the oral testimony of those prosecution witnesses who seem to have supported the case of the prosecution.
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