Balwinder Singh Bartia, the alleged travel agency, resides in Ludhiana, a sizable industrial city in the north Indian state of Punjab, where the inquiry was conducted, according to EU Helpers.
Later, according to the CBI, evidence-gathering items were discovered during the search, and a sum of money equal to about Rs. 70.10 lakh (€78,542.45) was taken from a bank that was closed in the same city.
The suspect allegedly demanded between Rs 25 lakh and Rs 45 (€2,800 and €5,600) from young farmers and jobless individuals in the Punjabi state in exchange for Schengen visas from the French Embassy in New Delhi, according to the Bureau. Additionally, he scheduled their flights from France to the United States ten days following their arrival in the latter country.
The French Embassy has not yet made any remarks regarding the incident.
Due to the CBI's probe, legal actions have been taken against six private individuals, including two who were once employed by the French Embassy in New Delhi's Visa Department. The CBI asserts that between January 1 and May 6, 2022, these two people collaborated with others to illegally provide visas throughout that time.
Providing fake letters purportedly written by a private firm with headquarters in Bengaluru to the French Consulate General in Bengaluru for the purpose of awarding entry visas for their joining private companies in Port-Le-Havre, France, is one of the fraudulent acts undertaken by these persons.
The CBI had previously carried out searches at six sites, including Delhi, Patiala, Gurdaspur, and Jammu at the accused's premises in December 2022, during which it had gathered incriminating evidence, including laptops, mobile phones, dubious passports, etc.
In 2002, India ranked third in the number of applicants for Schengen visas, slightly behind Turkey and the Russian Federation. In 2022, 671,928 applications were submitted to the Schengen embassies in India, 18.3% of which were turned down.
The French consulate authorities in India received the most applications (138,643), followed by Switzerland (106,025) and Spain (80,098). As a result, of the 121,188 applications that the Schengen countries rejected, France also turned down the most, 27,681.
For applicants, obtaining a visa frequently costs money and takes time. Obtaining the necessary paperwork, paying the €80 Schengen visa fee, getting the appropriate travel insurance, and other steps are all part of the process.