New Delhi: A Delhi court sought Wednesday a response from the CBI on a plea filed by former Amnesty International India Chief Aakar Patel. He has moved court seeking a direction to remove a Lookout Circular (LOC) issued against him in a case of an alleged violation of Foreign Contributions Regulation Act (FCRA). Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Pawan Kumar issued notice to the probe agency. He sought their reply by Thursday when the court will hear the matter further.
“Let reply be called from the IO (investigating officer) with the directions that he shall remain present in the court on April 7,” the court said. It noted that the chargesheet was already filed and that too without the arrest of the accused.
Patel also sought the court’s permission to visit the USA to ‘take up his foreign assignment and lecture series organised by various universities’ till May 30. Aakar Patel alleged that he was stopped by the immigration authorities at Bangalore International Airport earlier Wednesday morning while he was boarding a flight to the USA.
Patel’s application claimed that the action was taken despite an order by a Gujarat court granting him permission to travel to the USA. The application alleged that the LOC was issued without following the due process of law.
“The applicant suffered the value of his tickets and his immediate programme as well on account of arbitrary and absolute illegal actions on part of the investigating authorities,” the application claimed.
It alleged that the investigating authorities have acted in the ‘most illegal, arbitrary and nefarious manner in putting fetters on the fundamental rights of the applicant and have not even bothered to inform him well in advance for which there would be no predicament whatsoever with the investigating authorities’.
“Petitioner’s fundamental rights have been seriously breached by the investigating authorities without due application of mind, necessity or for any worthwhile purpose,” it alleged.
Patel is being prosecuted before a court in Surat, in a private complaint lodged by a BJP leader, Purneshbhai Ishwarbhai Modi. The application claimed that Patel was allowed by the Surat court to travel abroad and accordingly the passport of the petitioner was released for a period of March 1 to May 30.
The CBI had lodged the FIR in 2019 under various sections of FCRA and section 120 (criminal conspiracy) of IPC. Patel is not a named accused in the said FIR, the application claimed.
