The Crossbill News Desk
The Allahabad High Court on Monday, November 3, granted bail to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) youth-wing functionary Bikram Roy, who was arrested in a 2023 case filed by the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) for allegedly assisting Bangladeshi nationals in illegally entering India and obtaining forged identity documents.
The court granted bail on the ground of parity with other co-accused who have already been released, Live Law reported.
A division bench of Justice Rajesh Singh Chauhan and Justice Abdhesh Kumar Chaudhary passed the order while hearing Roy’s appeal filed under Section 21(4) of the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008, challenging the earlier orders of the Special Judge, NIA, Lucknow. The lower court had twice rejected Roy’s bail plea.
While granting relief, the high court observed that several co-accused booked under the same First Information Report (FIR) had already been granted bail by coordinate benches.
The case was registered under Sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 419, 420 (cheating), 467, 468, 471 (forgery), and 370 (human trafficking) of the Indian Penal Code, along with Section 14C of the Foreigners Act, 1946, which pertains to offences related to illegal migration, the report stated.
Appearing for Roy, advocate Taha Chishti pointed out that in a similar appeal filed by co-accused Adil-ur-Rahman last month, the high court had extended bail, noting that multiple other accused — Abu Saleh Mandal, Abdul Awal, Abdulla Gazi, and Kafiluddin — had been released earlier in June 2025.
In its June 2025 order, the division bench had observed that while the FIR alleged the accused were aiding Rohingya migrants in settling in India and using the money for anti-national activities, the charge-sheets filed did not include any offences under the NIA Schedule. It also noted that the accused had already spent nearly two years in custody. The high court last month further observed that the maximum punishment under the Foreigners Act extends only up to five years.
Notably, only Roy and Adil-ur-Rahman were charged under Section 370 IPC (human trafficking), which is categorised as a scheduled offence. Roy’s counsel also cited the Supreme Court’s recent order granting bail to another co-accused, Shekh Nazibul Haque, who had been in custody for nearly two years.
The apex court had noted that the prosecution planned to examine over 100 witnesses, indicating that the trial would take considerable time to conclude, Live Law reported.
It was further argued that Roy, who worked as a rickshaw puller, was accused merely of bringing a few unauthorised persons from the Bangladesh border to West Bengal and had no prior criminal record.
The 2023 ATS case had attracted attention for exposing an alleged network involved in human trafficking and document forgery operating along the Indo-Bangladesh border. The ATS had claimed that the group collected money for facilitating such activities and that some of the funds were being diverted towards anti-India operations.
The court granted bail on the ground of parity with other co-accused who have already been released, Live Law reported.
A division bench of Justice Rajesh Singh Chauhan and Justice Abdhesh Kumar Chaudhary passed the order while hearing Roy’s appeal filed under Section 21(4) of the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008, challenging the earlier orders of the Special Judge, NIA, Lucknow. The lower court had twice rejected Roy’s bail plea.
While granting relief, the high court observed that several co-accused booked under the same First Information Report (FIR) had already been granted bail by coordinate benches.
The case was registered under Sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 419, 420 (cheating), 467, 468, 471 (forgery), and 370 (human trafficking) of the Indian Penal Code, along with Section 14C of the Foreigners Act, 1946, which pertains to offences related to illegal migration, the report stated.
Appearing for Roy, advocate Taha Chishti pointed out that in a similar appeal filed by co-accused Adil-ur-Rahman last month, the high court had extended bail, noting that multiple other accused — Abu Saleh Mandal, Abdul Awal, Abdulla Gazi, and Kafiluddin — had been released earlier in June 2025.
In its June 2025 order, the division bench had observed that while the FIR alleged the accused were aiding Rohingya migrants in settling in India and using the money for anti-national activities, the charge-sheets filed did not include any offences under the NIA Schedule. It also noted that the accused had already spent nearly two years in custody. The high court last month further observed that the maximum punishment under the Foreigners Act extends only up to five years.
Notably, only Roy and Adil-ur-Rahman were charged under Section 370 IPC (human trafficking), which is categorised as a scheduled offence. Roy’s counsel also cited the Supreme Court’s recent order granting bail to another co-accused, Shekh Nazibul Haque, who had been in custody for nearly two years.
The apex court had noted that the prosecution planned to examine over 100 witnesses, indicating that the trial would take considerable time to conclude, Live Law reported.
It was further argued that Roy, who worked as a rickshaw puller, was accused merely of bringing a few unauthorised persons from the Bangladesh border to West Bengal and had no prior criminal record.
The 2023 ATS case had attracted attention for exposing an alleged network involved in human trafficking and document forgery operating along the Indo-Bangladesh border. The ATS had claimed that the group collected money for facilitating such activities and that some of the funds were being diverted towards anti-India operations.
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