On Thursday, the Patiala District Court upheld the 2-year jail term of Punjabi pop singer Daler Mehndi, who in 2018 was sentenced for a 2003 human trafficking case.
Additional District & Session Judge HS Grewal dismissed the singer’s appeal against conviction & upheld the decision of the lower Court that had held Mehndi guilty under Section 420 (cheating) & 120B (conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code. The trial Court had sentenced him to 2 years’ imprisonment & also imposed a fine of ₹2,000.
He was on bail as he had appealed against the decision of the trial Court. After the Additional District Sessions Judge dismissed Mehndi’s appeal, he was taken into custody. He is likely to be sent to Patiala jail, where cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu is also lodged.
The Patiala police had booked Daler & his brother Shamsher Mehndi, who died in 2017, & 2 others on a complaint filed by Bakshish Singh of Balbera village. Bakshish alleged that Mehndi took ₹12 lakh to send him to Canada. 35 more complaints, levelling charges of fraud against the brothers, came up later.
While Shamsher & Dhian Singh died during trial, Bulbul Mehta, an employee of Mehndi firm, was acquitted for lack of evidence.
The complainants had alleged that the Mehandi brothers had taken “passage money” from them to help them migrate to the US illegally, but failed to do so.
It was also alleged that the Mehndi brothers had taken two troupes in 1998 & 1999 during which 10 people were taken to the US as group members & were “dropped off” illegally.
Patiala police had even raided the offices of Daler at Connaught Place in Delhi & seized documents, including the case file of those who had paid the alleged “passage money” to the Mehndi brothers.
In 2006, Patiala Police filed 2 discharge petitions stating Daler to be innocent, but the Court upheld that the singer be prosecuted as there was “sufficient evidence against him on the judicial file & scope for further investigation”.
Complainant Bakshish Singh said that he faced threats during the 19-year of pendency of the case to get justice. He said that he will approach higher Court to increase the sentence.
Case file
Oct 19, 2003: Patiala police register FIR against Daler, his brother Shamsher & others
Dec 19: Daler arrested in Delhi. Police charged him with indulging in human trafficking since 1997
Feb 2005: Singer requested for re-investigation
Jan 2006: Police filed two discharge petitions terming Daler to be innocent
Oct 2006: Court ruled that the singer be prosecuted as there was enough evidence against him
Oct 2017: Co-accused Shamsher Mehndi dies
March 2018: Court awarded two-year imprisonment and ₹2000 fine
July 2022: Court dismissed appeal of Daler against conviction
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