Mon Mar 17 16:19:44 UTC 2025: ## Canadian Man Freed After 16-Year Legal Battle in India
**Madurai, India (March 17, 2025)** – The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court has quashed the charges against Zakaria Farah, a Canadian national, ending a 16-year legal ordeal that prevented him from returning home. Farah was accused of using a forged exit permit to board a flight in 2007.
The court found the prosecution’s case lacking, citing the failure to produce the allegedly forged document and any forensic evidence to prove its fraudulent nature. Justice K. Murali Shankar noted the prosecution’s inability to demonstrate prima facie evidence of forgery, thus failing to substantiate charges under the Indian Penal Code, Foreigners Act, and Passports Act.
Furthermore, the court criticized the 16-year delay between the 2007 FIR and the 2023 chargesheet filing, deeming the prosecution’s explanation for the delay unacceptable. The court concluded that the chargesheet was unsustainable and ordered its quashing, finally allowing Farah to leave India. The protracted legal battle significantly impacted Farah’s personal and professional life.
First Piper 