A CBI court in Panchkula has dismissed the anticipatory bail plea of a woman accused in a human trafficking and overseas job fraud case registered by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
The accused, Manju Singh ,51, a resident of Faridabad, had filed her second anticipatory bail application, which was rejected by the court after hearing arguments from both sides.
The NIA had registered an FIR in May 2024 under multiple sections of the Indian Penal Code, including 323, 342, 346, 364, 370, 420, 506, and 120-B, along with Sections 10 and 24 of the Emigration Act.
According to the complaint filed by Arun Kumar, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, he and his friend came across an individual identified as Bobby Kataria through Instagram and YouTube, who claimed to provide jobs abroad. Trusting the advertisements, they contacted him via WhatsApp and later met him at his office in a mall in Sector 109.
Kataria allegedly assured them of jobs in the UAE and asked for ₹2,000 as registration charges. The complainant paid the amount and subsequently transferred ₹50,000 to the account of MBK Global Visa Private Limited. Later, on Kataria’s instructions, he transferred another ₹1 lakh to an associate, Ankit Shaukin.
{{/usCountry}}Kataria allegedly assured them of jobs in the UAE and asked for ₹2,000 as registration charges. The complainant paid the amount and subsequently transferred ₹50,000 to the account of MBK Global Visa Private Limited. Later, on Kataria’s instructions, he transferred another ₹1 lakh to an associate, Ankit Shaukin.
{{/usCountry}}The complainant was then provided with an air ticket to Vientiane, Laos. Before departure, he was allegedly asked to arrange USD equivalent to ₹50,000. Similarly, another victim, Manish Tomar, was promised a job in Singapore and reportedly paid around ₹2.57 lakh.
Upon reaching Vientiane on March 28, 2024, the victims were received by a person identifying himself as Abhi, and a Pakistani agent, who claimed to be Kataria’s associate. They were first taken to a hotel and later transported via train and taxi to the Golden Triangle area, where they met two persons namely Ankit Shaukin and Nitin Sharma alias Rocky.
The complainant alleged that they were taken to a Chinese-run company, where they were physically assaulted, their passports confiscated, and they were forced to engage in cyber fraud activities along with some American citizens. They were threatened with death and told they would not be allowed to return to India if they refused to comply.
The complaint further claimed that around 150 Indians, including women, were being held there under similar circumstances after being trafficked on the pretext of overseas employment. Victims were allegedly forced to sign contracts and kept in confinement. The passports of many such persons were kept by the Chinese company.
After working under duress for two days, the complainant and his friend managed to escape on the third day and contacted the Indian Embassy for assistance in returning home.
Following the registration of the FIR, the NIA initiated an investigation and arrested the main accused, Balwant Singh alias Bobby Kataria. He was, however, granted regular bail last month.
While rejecting Manju Singh’s anticipatory bail plea, the court observed that considering her role in the alleged offence, she was not entitled to the concession of pre-arrest bail.