BALASORE: A designated court of Balasore on Friday sentenced a Mumbai-based tour operator to seven years of rigorous imprisonment for cheating Rs 1.2 crore from Hajj pilgrims on pretext of arranging religious trip to Saudi Arabia for Umrah.
The court for Odisha Protection of Interests of Depositors (in Financial Establishments) Act for Balasore also imposed a fine of Rs 2.75 lakh on Nabeel Abdul Mubin Shaikh, one of the proprietors of Al-Adam Tour and Travels.
The judgment in the case was one of the quickest since the trial was completed barely three months and five days after submission of chargesheet and six and half months from the date of case registration.
As per the case filed by Mir Khursid of Kazimahala, a native of Dhamnagar in Bhadrak district, Al-Adam Tours and Travels as well as Al-Izma Tours and Travels collected Rs 1.2 crore from 189 devotees during 2019-23 to arrange pilgrimage. But the proprietors of the two agencies neither took the prospective pilgrims on the religious trip nor did they refund the amounts collected from them.
Last year on September 12, a case was registered and Shaikh was arrested on September 27. Chargesheet in the case was submitted on December 23 under sections 420/406/467/468/471/120-B of the Indian Penal Code.
As per the case registered by Economic Offences Wing, the proprietors of Al-Adam Tour and Travel floated advertisements in social media apart from distributing leaflets, which prompted Muslim devotees to avail of two of their tour packages at the rates of Rs 45,786 and Rs 50,786 per individual pilgrim. They were assured of a cheap, secure and safe pilgrimage.
People from Bhadrak, Balasore, Baripada and other parts of Odisha made payments for the twin package into the advertised accounts through bank transfer. Some used UPI mode and cash payment was also made. Shaikh and his mother Firdos Bi Abdul Mubin Shaikh - a joint proprietor of the agency - were authorised signatories of the accounts in which the pilgrims’ money was deposited.
The collection continued till the first half of 2023, after which the proprietors switched off their mobile phones and remained incommunicado. Some depositors who insisted on a refund were given cheques, which were dishonoured by the banks.
Pranab Kumar Panda was the special public prosecutor of the OPID court of Balasore while inspector Tapas Ranjan Sahu was investigating officer of the case.