HC To Visa Fraud Accused: Publish Your Own Criminal Record in 5 Newspapers

Punjab & Haryana High Court orders visa fraud accused– a Kapurthala woman — accused in a 2022 overseas-job fraud case to publish her criminal antecedents in 5 newspapers before it considers quashing her FIR.

North Desk Correspondent

Chandigarh, July 24

In an order that could set a precedent for how Punjab’s courts deal with the state’s endemic travel-agent fraud, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed a woman accused of duping a Jalandhar man of lakhs of rupees on the pretext of sending him abroad to publish a public notice (at her own expense) disclosing her name, address, and the details of every criminal case registered against her, before the court will even consider quashing the FIR against her.

The order, passed by Justice Alok Jain, came in a petition filed by Paramjit Kaur, 32, of Kapurthala’s Begowal, seeking quashing of an FIR registered against her in 2022 on the ground that she has since compromised with the complainant.

The court did not buy it — at least not without conditions.

THE CASE

According to case records, the FIR was lodged by Balwinder Kumar, a resident of Sher Singh Colony in Jalandhar, who alleged that Kaur operates as a travel/visa agent. She took ₹3,50,000 from him in 2019 on the promise of sending him to Dubai as a “heavy duty driver.” The job never materialised. When Kumar sought a refund, he says Kaur returned only a partial amount and kept ₹1,62,000, before allegedly abusing him and threatening to falsely implicate him when he pressed for the balance.

The FIR names sections 406, 420 and 120-B of the erstwhile IPC, along with Section 13 of the Punjab Travel Professionals (Regulation) Act, 2014. A co-accused, Rakesh Kumar of Hoshiarpur, was named subsequently and has since been declared a proclaimed offender by police — he remains untraced.

Records also show a nearly three-year gap between the alleged offence (2019) and registration of the FIR (2022), with the complainant’s original application to the Commissioner of Police in Jalandhar alleging that an inquiry officer had shown favour to the accused and delayed action — a claim that appears to have prompted the case to be escalated for a fresh probe before it was finally registered.

THE COMPROMISE

High Court Orders Visa Fraud Accused: With a chargesheet already filed and the trial court proceeding to the evidence stage, Kaur approached “respectables” from both families to broker a settlement. A compromise deed dated May 6, 2026 records a total settlement of ₹2,60,000 — of which ₹1,00,000 was paid immediately by cheque, with the remaining ₹1,60,000 to be paid only after the FIR is quashed by the High Court. The complainant, in turn, agreed to cooperate with the quashing petition and not pursue the case further.

Kaur moved the High Court days later, arguing that since both sides had amicably resolved their dispute, continuing the prosecution would serve no purpose, leaning on a ruling that gives courts wide powers to quash cases on the basis of compromise.

High Court Orders Visa Fraud Accused

High Court Orders Visa Fraud Accused: The State, in its reply, did not dispute that a compromise had been reached — calling it, however, only a “partial compromise.” It was this observation, combined with what the court described as the petitioner’s “criminal antecedents” and involvement in “several other criminal cases,” that led Justice Jain to hold back from quashing the FIR outright.

The court held that allegations of fraud relating to overseas placement rackets — involving fake documents and visa processes — are serious enough to have “impacted many innocent lives” who paid heavy sums hoping to settle abroad, and that the public has a right to know who they may be dealing with before any relief is granted.

THE DIRECTIONS

High Court Orders Visa Fraud Accused: The court’s order requires Kaur to publish, at her own cost, a public notice in at least five widely circulated newspapers in Punjab — at least two of them in Punjabi — within 15 days. The notice must:

Carry her name, address and contact details

List particulars of every FIR registered against her, “irrespective of whether pending, decided or quashed”

Specifically detail any case involving fraudulent overseas placement, misrepresentation or inducement through fake documents or visas — including ones already settled by repayment

State that the notice is being published on the court’s direction

Be printed in a font size larger than 6 points, so it cannot be buried in fine print

Kaur has also been directed to file copies of the published notices along with a compliance affidavit before the next hearing. Only after that — and after the trial court’s own report is placed on record — will the High Court consider the quashing plea.

READ ALSO: How a Fake ₹10 Lakh “Gift” From Canada Cost Two Chandigarh Brothers Lakhs

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