Daler Mehndi has been granted relief in the 2003 human trafficking case by the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The singer had been sentenced to two-year imprisonment by a Patiala court in the case earlier this year. However, the High Court has stayed that decision.
Reportedly, Daler has been lodged in the Patiala jail since July when he was sentenced in the case. He was first imprisoned in 2018 and was imposed a fine of Rs 1,000. He had appealed the decision in the court of Additional Session Judge of Patiala, which was denied in July.
Punjab and Haryana High Court grants relief to singer Daler Mehndi; stays the decision of Patiala Court that had sentenced him to two years of imprisonment in a 2003 human trafficking case.
(Pic - Daler Mehndi's Twitter profile) pic.twitter.com/mSQaTp9tBY
— ANI (@ANI) September 15, 2022
Daler’s lawyer LM Gulati had told PTI that they will move the High Court in the case and had said, “Unfortunately, the court's verdict is not in our favour and his conviction has been upheld. We will immediately move the higher court and file an appeal. We are very hopeful for justice.”
The singer and his brother Shamsher Mehndi were originally booked by the Patiala Police following a complaint of one Bakshish Singh. Approximately 30 more cases were registered against the singer for taking ‘passage money’ from people promising to help them migrate to the USA but hey later defected on their promise. Allegations were also made against the brothers that they had taken people to Canada illegally and dropped there. The singer used to take people abroad as part of his troupe.
(Source: PTI/ANI)
