Human trafficking: Patiala court dismisses Daler Mehndi’s appeal against two-year sentence

PATIALA: A court here on Thursday dismissed an appeal filed by Punjabi singer Daler Mehndi against his two-year jail term in a human trafficking case.

Mehndi was taken into police custody after the court of Additional Sessions Judge H S Grewal dismissed his appeal. Now, his medical examination will be conducted.

A Patiala court in March 2018 had sentenced Mehndi to two years in jail in the 2003 human trafficking case. A fine of Rs 1,000 was also imposed on him.

Mehndi was then released on a bail bond.

The Patiala police had booked Mehndi and his brother Shamsher Mehndi on a complaint filed by one Bakshish Singh.

Over 30 more complaints, levelling charges of fraud against the brothers, also came up later.

The complainants had alleged that the brothers had taken “passage money” from them to help them migrate to the United States illegally but failed to do so.

The complainant had also alleged that the singer had taken money for taking him to Canada.

It was also alleged that the Mehndi brothers took two troupes in 1998 and 1999 during the course of which 10 persons were taken to the US as group members and “dropped off” illegally. (PTI)