Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court has stated that those accused in criminal cases can only be allowed to travel abroad by imposing stringent conditions so that they do not abscond.
Acting Chief Justice Raghavendra Singh Chauhan said that all travel details could be secured and such persons could be allowed foreign travel after collecting an undertaking from them.
Justice Chauhan was dealing with a petition of Mr Bijay Kumar Mohanty of PCH Corporation Ltd, PCH Lifestyle Limited, and PCH Retail Limited. He had challenged the CBI’s circular against him to travel to the United Kingdom.
The CBI had named Mr Mohanty as the eighth accused in its FIR regarding the cheating of Andhra Bank of Rs 28.44 crore. He was not given permission to travel abroad.
Mr Mohanty approached the court seeking permission to travel to the UK to be with his daughter who was scheduled to deliver a baby in the first week of June.
The court questioned the CBI on its authority to restrain a person from travelling abroad. CBI counsel said there was a grave possibility that the petitioner may abscond.
Mr A. Laxman, counsel for the petitioner, said that Accused No. 4 (Sardar Balvinder Singh), allegedly the main culprit, had been permitted to travel abroad on the condition he intimates the CBI of his travel plans.
After perusing the records, Justice Chauhan observed that though the right to travel is a fundamental right, it was not an absolute one. He said that given the petitioner has been accused in a case of cheating of public money in huge amounts, he cannot be allowed to travel abroad without imposing a stringent condition upon him.
The court directed the CBI to permit the petitioner to go the UK to visit his daughter provided he gives a personal bond of Rs 3 lakh and two sureties for the same amount. The court directed Mr Mohanty to submit his travel plans.
