Justice & Compassion Go Together, Punjab & Haryana High Court Allows Sportsman Accused In Fraud Case To Travel Abroad For Shooting Camp

The Punjab & Haryana High Court underscored the delicate balance between justice and compassion by permitting a sportsman facing fraud allegations to travel abroad for a shooting camp.Chirag Kumar Sardana is accused in a Fraud and Arms Act case. His passport was released by the Sessions Court only for a limited period, which prevented him from participating in international shooting camps at Europe and USA.Justice Harpreet Singh Brar opined, that "a delicate balance must be struck between the rights of the accused and those of the victim. While accountability and fairness are integral facets of justice, the idea of just justice can only be realised through compassion. However, the said purpose cannot be achieved if justice is dispensed only on the anvil of accountability in a mechanical manner, devoid of context and nuance. It must be remembered that justice and compassion are mutually inclusive."The Court referred to M. Viswanathan vs. M/s. S.K. Tiles & Potteries P. Ltd. and others [2010 (4) SCC (Cri) 298], wherein while discussing the scope of Section 482 of the Cr.P.C., the Apex Court observed that the inherent powers of the High Court can be exercised to secure the ends of justice and rectify any wrongs that have crept in course of administration of justice.Reliance was also placed on Satish Chandra Verma v.. Union of India and others 2019 (2) SCT 741 to underscore that, right to travel abroad is an important basic human right for it nourishes independent and self- determining creative character of the individual, not only by extending his freedoms of action, but also by extending the scope of his experience. In the present case, the Court noted that the petitioner is an Indian citizen, holding an Indian passport. it opined that he is not likely to flee from justice. "Moreover, denying him the right to travel abroad would have a truly detrimental effect on his professional career," the Court added.Considering that the Camp is concluding on December 31, the Court said, "The petitioner shall appear before the concerned trial Court on or before 05.01.2026 and that he would not seek any extension regarding this.""After 05.01.2026, he will surrender his passport and join the proceeding," it added.In the light of the above, the plea was allowed.Mr. Arav Gupta, Advocate for the petitioner.Title: CHIRAG KUMAR SARDANA v. STATE OF HARYANA AND ANOTHERCitation: 2025 LiveLaw (PH) 312Click here to read/download the order

Justice & Compassion Go Together, Punjab & Haryana High Court Allows Sportsman Accused In Fraud Case To Travel Abroad For Shooting Camp

Aiman J. Chishti

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