The High Court of Karnataka on Monday ordered issue of notice to the Central Government and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on a petition questioning stopping the brother of Srikrishna alias Sriki, who is an accused in a couple of alleged cheating cases related to bitcoins and hacking, from travelling abroad to report back to his job.
Justice Krishna S. Dixit passed the order on the petition filed by Sudarshan R., who is the brother of Srikrishna.
It has been pointed out in the petition that immigration authorities at the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru on January 13, 2022, stopped Mr. Sudarshan from boarding a flight to the Netherlands at the last minutes without any prior notice to him on any restrictions from travelling abroad.
The petitioner has stated that he has been working as an engineer in the Netherlands for the past several years and had come to India in August 2021 to attend to his ailing father, who was hospitalised following a head injury suffered due to a fall home in the city.
During his stay in Bengaluru, it has been stated in the petition, he was summoned for investigation by an officer of the ED in the month of November 2021 in connection with an alleged scam in which Srikrishna’s name is associated with. The petitioner has stated that he attended the questioning sessions by the ED on December 29, 30, 2021, and January 1, 2022, and cooperated with the investigation.
Making it clear that he neither has any criminal antecedents nor is associated with the alleged scam, to which his brother’s name is linked to, as he has been employed abroad, the petitioner has said that he was supposed to be back in the Netherlands by January 27, 2022, to fill the country’s resident permit norms as per his employment contract.
While seeking a direction to the authorities to allow him to travel abroad for his employment, the petitioner also sought a direction to the authorities to pay him adequate compensation.
