On Friday, Punjabi pop singer Daler Mehndi was convicted by a Patiala court in a 2003 human trafficking case. According to news agency ANI, he has been sentenced to two years in prison. ANI also reported that he was later granted bail.
Mehdi and his brother Shamsher Singh had been accused of sending people abroad by illegally disguising them as members of his troupe after charging exorbitant “passage money”. The brothers allegedly had taken two troupes in 1998 and 1999 during the course of which 10 people were taken to the U.S as group members and “dropped off” illegally.
On a trip to the U.S with an actress, Mehdi reportedly “dropped off” three women in San Francisco, and on a later trip, also “dropped off” three men in New Jersey.
Patiala Police has also raided the singer’s offices, seizing case documents including a case file of those who had already paid the supposed passage money.
The singer was reportedly taken into custody by the Punjab Police, however, after his conviction was announced, he was granted bail less than half an hour later.
