The Allahabad High Court has said that Maharajganj district is a border town from where foreign nationals could get into the country unauthorizedly and the illegal entrants have at times posed a risk to national security.
The Court directed the Superintendent of Police, Maharajganj, to appear in person and file an affidavit explaining the deficiencies in the earlier affidavit.
A single-judge bench of Justice Ajay Bhanot passed this order while hearing a Criminal Misc Bail Application filed by Scott Boyd Knox.
The Court stated that the affidavit filed by the Superintendent of Police, Maharajganj, is not satisfactory. The matter relates to a foreign national who according to the prosecution entered the country illegally. The post of Superintendent of Police, Maharajganj is a sensitive one.
The Court observed from the affidavit it transpires that an interrogatory was sent to FRRO and Central Foreign Bureau of Immigration. Responding to that interrogatory, the said authorities required the inquiries to be routed from the office of the Superintendent of Police. However, the affidavit does not disclose whether follow up action was taken by the Superintendent of Police or not. Considering the deficiencies in the affidavit it appears that due importance is not being given to such a sensitive issue.
The Court further directed the Additional Director General of Police, Gorakhpur Range, Gorakhpur to appear in person on the next date of listing and he shall file a personal affidavit specifically indicating the material which prima facie establishes forged entries in visa and passport of the applicant and any other relevant incriminating details.
The Courts in ordinary course are most reluctant to summon any officials as it checks them from the important duties they discharge in the service of the public at large. However, considering the sensitivity of the matter and the casual manner which is being attended to the hand of the Court is forced. Presence of Additional Director General of Police, Gorakhpur Range, Gorakhpur has become imperative for assisting the Court to arrive at a just conclusion, the Court further said.
The Court has fixed the next hearing of the petition on January 31, 2023.