Mumbai: A sessions court has granted bail to Lieutenant Commander Braham Sharma who was arrested by the city crime branch for allegedly being part of a gang that was sending people to South Korea on forged documents in exchange for money.
Granting bail, Judge V M Pathade said, “Thus, after considering the facts and circumstances of the case in hand including that the chargesheet has been filed against the present applicant and the co-accused, the applicant is under detention since June 29, 2024, the other co-accused are enlarged on bail by this court, the trial is yet to commence, there is no likelihood of the trial being concluded in the near future… I am of the considered opinion that the applicant is entitled for grant of bail.”
The racket had come to light following a complaint from South Korea’s consulate in Mumbai. Police said many of the applicants, mostly from Jammu and Kashmir, travelled to South Korea, destroyed their documents, including passports and visas, and sought asylum.
In June, the police had arrested Sharma, Simran Jeti, Ravi Kumar and Deepak Dagar.
Seeking bail, the lawyer for the accused submitted that he had deep roots in society. “He is innocent and falsely implicated in the crime in question. He is not a beneficiary of the amount allegedly involved in the crime. The investigation culminated in filing a chargesheet. His further detention is unwarranted,” the lawyer argued.
The lawyer also submitted that the offences are not punishable with death or imprisonment for life. tnn
