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Criminal Miscellaneous No. 1358-B of 1982, decided on 13th November, 1982. '

---S. 497--Emigration Ordinance (XVIII of 1979), S. 22--Bail, grant of--Witnesses directly charging petitioner as having received a sum of rupees one lac from them on pretext of arranging visas and getting them employed overseas--Offence under S. 22, Emigration Ordinance being punishable for 14 years' R.I. held, carried by prohibitory clause of S. 497, Cr.P.C.--Bail refused, in circumstances.

Syed Murtaza Ali Zaidi for Petitioner.

Shahid Latif for the State.

The brief facts of the case are that the petitioner falsely represented himself as an authorised recruiting agent for promoting overseas employments and thus received a sum of Rs. 1,26,000 from Haji Abdul Hamid complainant in this case and 13 others on the pretext that he would arrange their visas for Saudi Arabia and would secure for them employment in that country, but he did not fulfil his promise and misappropriated the aforesaid amount. When those persons pressurised the petitioner for the return of money, he executed a promote of Rs. 92,000 in their favour and latter issued a cheque to be encashed by National Bank, Karachi which too was dishonoured. Being aggrieved an application was given by those persons to D.M.L.A., Multan who ordered the registration of the present case against the petitioner after detailed inquiry held by F.I.A., Multan.

2. The petitioner was arrested in this case on 1-9-1981 and is now lodged in judicial lock-up.

3. A similar earlier petition moved by the petitioner was dismissed by Special Judge Central, Lahore, Camp at Multan on 2-8-1982. Hence this petition.

4. I have heard the learned counsel for the petitioner as well as for the State.

5. It is submitted on behalf of the petitioner that the money from the P.Ws. in fact was received by Abdul Hamid complainant and not by the petitioner. Akhlaq Ahmad, Inspector, F.I.A. has read in open Court statements of the witnesses, who have directly charged the petitioner as having received the amount from them on the pretext that he would get them employed overseas and would also arrange visas for them. It is admitted before me that the petitioner is also detained by the Martial Law Authorities for his anti-social activities. Since the petitioner has fraudulently fleeced simple villagers of their hard earned money, amounting to over one lac rupees therefore, to my view there exist reasonable grounds to believe that he has committed an offence under section 22 of the Emigration Ordinance, 1979 which is punishable and with 14 years, and thus his case falls within the prohibitory R.I. clause of section 497, Cr.P.C. In these circumstances, the petitioner has no case for grant of bail. The petition stands dismissed.

S. G. D. Bail refused.

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