Delhi HC refuses to quash ‘dunki route’ human trafficking FIR: ‘Wider impact on society’
Promised a work visa in the US, the victim was allegedly tortured and exploited and taken via a ‘dunki route’ to enter the country.
In Harmeet Singh v. State (NCT of Delhi), the Delhi High Court quashed proceedings in a case involving a 17-year-old prosecutrix who is now an adult, married to the petitioner, and the mother of a child (Source: File/Representational) Refusing to quash an FIR involving allegations of human trafficking via the ‘dunki route’, the Delhi High Court has held that such cases “have a wider impact on society at large”, especially “with the proliferation of such organised activity.”
Justice Prateek Jalan, on April 16, dismissed a plea by the accused, a travel agent named Balwinder Singh Mattu, to quash the FIR lodged by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in December last year. Mattu sought that the case be quashed on the ground that the complainant and the accused have settled and arrived at a compromise.
Taking into account the seriousness of the offences alleged, of “human trafficking and cheating of vulnerable youth on the promise of better livelihood”, Justice Jalan ruled that these are “not in the nature of private commercial disputes, but have a wider impact on society at large”.
“The offence alleged is a serious one, which places vulnerable individuals in the face of physical and legal peril, as in the case of (complainant-survivor) herein. With the proliferation of such organised activity, the impact is in fact not just on the individual concerned, but on society as a whole,” the court reasoned while refusing to quash the FIR.
The CBI too, through its counsel Vikrant Pachnanda, opposed the quashing, submitting that the inducement of vulnerable individuals to migrate abroad on the basis of false assurances of employment “disclose a broader pattern of organised activity, which necessitates a detailed and thorough investigation”. It was also pointed out that the probe in the present case is still ongoing and is likely to be concluded within the next three months.
The case
In December 2025, the CBI lodged an FIR based on a complaint by Ravinder Singh, a resident of Punjab’s Gurdaspur, against M/s Mattu Overseas, a travel agency based in Karnal, Haryana; its proprietor Balwinder Singh Mattu; his friend and brother-in-law Amrit Singh; Sahib Singh and other unknown persons. The CBI booked the accused for offences of criminal conspiracy, cheating and trafficking of persons under the BNS.
As per the complaint, in 2024-25, the accused persons allegedly conspired to fraudulently and dishonestly induce Ravinder to pay Rs 25 lakh on the false pretext of providing a US work visa and a highly paid accounting gig in an American warehouse — so he could lead a better life.
By January 2025, Ravinder paid the amount. However, instead of a US work visa, he was allegedly provided an air ticket from Delhi to Cairo.
From Delhi, Ravinder was then allegedly “illegally transported, harboured, transferred and finally received at Managua, Nicaragua”. Along the way, he was allegedly “physically and mentally torture and exploited by the accused persons and their agents in foreign country” before he was facilitated to enter the US via illegal entry routes, commonly known as ‘donkey routes/dunki routes’.
The CBI’s FIR stated that the US Army arrested Ravinder while he was trying to enter American territory at the border, and he was finally deported to India on February 16, 2025.
On March 28 this year, Ravinder and the accused Balwinder reportedly inked their settlement under a Panchayati Compromise Deed. While the deed does not contemplate any monetary settlement, it recorded the understanding between the two that Ravinder shall cooperate in seeking quashing of the FIR.
Balwinder, through his counsel Dhruv Dwivedi, had also pointed out to the court that he was only engaged in providing legitimate travel agency services, for which he received a sum of Rs 1.5 lakh towards ticket expenses.
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