Travel Agent Fabricates Passport Renewal Documents For Terrorist: Karnataka High Court Refuses To Quash Case

The Karnataka High Court has refused relief to a travel agent who facilitated police verification by fabricating documents, for the purpose of renewal of passport for a terror-accused.

Acting as a travel agent, one UM Haidar allegedly furnished his own address in as many as fifteen passport applications, portraying the same as though they were the genuine residential addresses of the respective applicants seeking renewal of passports. In one such application police verification was undertaken, ultimately resulting in renewal of passports for one Ibrahim Khaleel, who is a person wanted by the Andhra Pradesh Anti-Terrorist Squad for alleged terrorist activities.

Haidar approached the High Court against the case registered against him for offences punishable under sections 465, 468, 471, 420 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 12B of the Passports Act, 1967. 

Justice M Nagaprasanna, while refusing to quash the case against Haidar noted that the allegation was not one of mere clerical facilitation or routine procedural assistance. "By facilitating the clearance of applications founded on allegedly fabricated residential credentials, the petitioner is said to have enabled the renewal of a passport in favour of a person suspected of activities inimical to national security. Such allegations, if ultimately established in trial, transcend ordinary criminal misconduct and enter the realm of conduct prejudicial to the security and sovereignty of the Nation," the single judge bench has held.

High Court has refused Haidar's plea seeking refuge merely under the plea of physical disability, ill-health, or the assertion that he functioned only as a bona fide travel agent processing paperwork for clients. "Such pleas, howsoever sympathetic, cannot eclipse the seriousness of the allegations. If the petitioner, knowingly or otherwise, became an instrument in the chain of acts that facilitated identity verification and travel documentation of a person alleged to be involved in terrorist activities, the matter demands full judicial scrutiny, " the judge has noted.

"The petitioner, therefore, must face trial and come out clean, if indeed he is innocent. His disability, health condition, or personal circumstances, though deserving of human sympathy, cannot become grounds to truncate prosecution where allegations touch upon acts potentially adverse to national interest. When the allegation concerns facilitation of documentation in favour of a person suspected of terrorist links, the issue ceases to be one of private criminality and assumes larger public significance", the high court's order notes.

Justice Nagaprasanna has also called for scrutiny into the conduct of the police constable who cleared verification of all fifteen applications routed through the accused travel agent. The judge has said the constable cannot be permitted to go scot-free. State Public Prosecutor told the high court that sanction to prosecute the said police constable has already been sought and is pending consideration. "If such a proposal is indeed awaiting consideration, it becomes imperative for the State to process the same with promptitude, bearing in mind the observations made herein. Any individual - whether a private citizen, intermediary, or public servant - who, by act of commission or omission, acts against the interest of the Nation must be brought to book. National security is not imperiled only by those who directly engage in unlawful acts; it is equally endangered by those who facilitate, enable, or negligently permit such acts to occur. The law must therefore reach every link in the chain," the order notes.

Case Title: U.M. HAIDAR vs. STATE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR

Bench: Justice M Nagaprasanna

Order Date: June 18, 2026