In Amritsar, a distressing incident has come to light where a young girl has fallen victim to a fraudulent scheme. The Civil Lines police have taken action by filing a case against a fake travel agent who swindled the girl of a significant sum of Rs 19 lakh. The girl had been lured into believing that the travel agent would secure a visa for her to study in the United Kingdom and also facilitate her family’s relocation to the same country. The accused individual has been identified as Harpreet Singh, residing in Laxmi Vihar on Majitha Road.
The charges brought against Harpreet Singh are grave, as he has been booked under multiple sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) including Sections 420 (cheating), 467 (forgery of valuable security), 468 (forgery for the purpose of cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document or electronic record), and 120-B (criminal conspiracy). In addition, he has been booked under Section 13 of the Punjab Travel and Professional Regulation Act, which pertains to regulation and oversight of travel-related services.
The complainant in this case is Mandeeep Kaur, who hails from Jethuwal village. She alleges that Harpreet Singh duped her by promising to arrange visas for her family’s settlement in the United Kingdom and securing a study visa for her personal education. However, despite receiving the substantial amount of money from her, he neither fulfilled his promises nor returned the money as agreed upon.
As a result of the investigation into the matter, the police have formally registered a case against Harpreet Singh. This incident underscores the importance of vigilance while dealing with travel agents and emphasizes the necessity of verifying the credentials and legitimacy of individuals or agencies before making any financial commitments.