New Delhi, 23 September (H.S.): A Delhi court on Wednesday granted default bail to six Ukrainian nationals accused of travelling to India and providing training to ethnic groups in the Northeast. The Rouse Avenue Court granted bail to each of the accused against a cash bond of Rs 1 lakh.

The court also discharged the six accused from offences under the Immigration and Foreigners Act on the basis of compounding proceedings before the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO).

Special Judge Prashant Sharma granted bail to Petro Hurba, Ters Sliviak, Ivan Sukmanovskyi, Marian Stefankiv, Maksym Honcharuk and Viktor Kaminskyi. The FRRO had imposed a fine of Rs 5.5 lakh on each accused.

Earlier, on September 18, the court had granted bail to US national Matthew Aaron Van Dyke on a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh, along with a surety of an equivalent amount. On Wednesday, the court modified that condition and exempted him from furnishing the Rs 1 lakh surety bond. He will now be released on a cash bond of Rs 1 lakh.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) filed its chargesheet in the case on September 8. The chargesheet names seven foreign nationals and invokes Sections 21 and 23 of the Foreigners Act. Along with Van Dyke, the six Ukrainian nationals have also been named as accused.

Although the NIA had initially registered an FIR under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), the chargesheet did not invoke provisions of the anti-terror law. On this basis, the court held that the accused had acquired the right to default bail under the applicable legal procedure.

On August 31, the Delhi High Court had dismissed a petition challenging the trial court’s decision to extend the investigation period from 90 days to 180 days.

The foreign nationals have been accused of illegally entering Myanmar and subsequently entering protected areas of Mizoram, where they allegedly established contact with ethnic groups. The allegations against them include supplying illegal weapons, providing training to ethnic groups and assisting them with drone operations.

According to the NIA, the accused entered India on foreign visas before travelling to Mizoram, a protected area, and subsequently crossed into Myanmar, where they allegedly established contact with ethnic armed groups. The agency has alleged that the foreign nationals received training in Myanmar before training members of these groups.

The NIA has further alleged that the groups were linked to insurgent organisations operating in India and that the accused brought a large consignment of drones from Europe.

The allegations form part of the NIA’s case and will be subject to the judicial process.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar