Delhi Court Discharges Kerala Nurse in Decade-Old Passport Forgery Case Citing Prosecution Lapses
A court in New Delhi has discharged a Kerala-based nurse from a decade-old cheating and passport forgery case that was linked to her deportation from Brussels back in 2015. The court pointed to glaring holes in the prosecution case, holding that the prosecution failed to prove that she had cheated the Indian immigration authorities as alleged by the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO).
Court Finds No Sufficient Ground to Proceed
Noting that there was "no sufficient ground" to proceed against the accused, additional sessions judge Pranav Joshi discharged Leena Maria Soosai from offences under various IPC provisions, including cheating and forgery, as well as for allegedly "holding forged passport" under the Passport Act. The judge emphasized that the prosecution's case was built on unverified allegations raised by the Belgian immigration authorities, without proper substantiation.
Multiple Lapses in Investigation Flagged
The court highlighted several critical lapses in the investigation that undermined the prosecution's case. These included:
- Lack of proper chain of custody for evidence
- Absence of original documents being produced in court
- Concealment on the part of the prosecution regarding key aspects of the case
One particularly concerning issue was that a letter presented as evidence showed the accused's name had been "inserted manually" while the rest of the contents were typed, and the original document was never produced before the court.
Background of the Case
In December 2015, Soosai had travelled from New Delhi to Brussels and was deported the very next day after Belgian authorities allegedly detected tampering in her passport. The defence, led by advocate Manoj Taneja, submitted that while her original passport was retained by authorities, no FIR was registered at the time and she was allowed to return to Kerala without any immediate legal action.
An FIR was registered only eight months later in 2016, at the instance of FRRO, at the IGI Airport police station. Soosai was granted anticipatory bail the same year, and the chargesheet was eventually filed on July 12, 2022 - nearly seven years after the initial incident.
Jurisdictional and Procedural Issues
The court noted several procedural and jurisdictional problems with the prosecution's case. Despite allegations of cheating, the Indian authorities had flagged "nothing suspicious" at her departure from New Delhi, and the case was initiated only after her deportation from Belgium.
Since the alleged offence was detected abroad, the prosecution was required to establish that the offence was committed in India under Section 188 of CrPC, but the investigation was noted to be "completely silent on this aspect." The court also observed that the Belgian authorities could not be examined due to immunity under the Vienna Convention, further complicating the prosecution's ability to prove its case.
Documentation and Record-Keeping Failures
The court pointed to significant documentation failures that weakened the prosecution's position. There was an absence of any record indicating when the passport was sent by the Belgian authorities or received by FRRO. Additionally, a "special report" referred to in FRRO correspondence was never placed on record, creating another gap in the evidentiary chain.
The judge's comprehensive analysis revealed that the prosecution had failed to meet the basic standards of evidence collection and presentation required for such a serious case involving allegations of passport forgery and cheating of immigration authorities.
