Pune: A sessions court in the city has rejected the bail application of a Bangladeshi national, who is accused of illegally entering India without a passport and residing in Chinchwad by using forged PAN card and credentials.Additional Sessions Judge P R Chaudhary said in his order on Jan 2, “The applicant has submitted the document which can show that he is resident of West Bengal but in investigation it reveals that he is a permanent resident of Bangladesh and his PAN card is forged one. His birth certificate indicates that he is a resident of Bangladesh. He entered India without a passport.”The state’s case was that the accused was apprehended along with another suspect during a verification exercise carried out by the anti-terrorism squad (ATS) Pune in coordination with the Chinchwad police. He was found working with a private limited company. During inquiry, the accused failed to provide a satisfactory local address and conceded that he was a Bangladeshi national, the prosecution claimed. The accused sought bail, arguing that he had lived in India for several years and citing multiple Bombay High Court orders granting bail in similar cases. However, the court found those rulings distinguishable on facts. The judge noted that in the cited cases there was no documentary proof of Bangladeshi nationality, whereas in the present matter the prosecution produced material showing the accused was a Bangladeshi national who entered India without valid travel documents. The court also noted that the chargesheet was already filed in the case and steps were initiated for cancellation of the PAN card claimed by the accused. Considering the material relied upon by the prosecution and the statutory provisions invoked, the court rejected the bail application.
