Moin Qureshi case: Immigration dept submits inquiry report

The Immigration department has submitted to Home Ministry its report on the lapses on part of its officers in allowing controversial meat exporter Moin Qureshi to go out of the country despite ED's Look Out Circular (LOC) against him.
Qureshi, who has a money laundering case pending against him, had managed to leave for Dubai last weekend after showing a court order in an income tax case. The Delhi-based meat exporter was detained at the IGI airport here based on a LOC issued by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
The probe has suggested Home Ministry that the mistake by the immigration officials was "bonafide" and not "malafide", official sources said today.

The Home Ministry is reviewing the report and any action would be taken against the officials involved in the gaffe after its perusal, they said.
The report gives a blow-by-blow account of the incident and has documents submitted by Qureshi to the immigration authorities, the sources said.
Qureshi was detained at the airport on October 15, following which the Immigration department had informed the ED about it. He then presented a court order in which there was no restriction on his flying abroad. The immigration officer checked for the veracity of the order and allowed him to fly to Dubai.

When the ED team reached the airport to take the meat exporter into custody, they were informed that he had been allowed to fly on the basis of the court order.
Later, the immigration officer realised that the order was in connection with an Income Tax case and not in the ED matter, prompting the authorities to order an inquiry.
The ED had registered a case against Qureshi under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) last year. He is under the scanner of probe agencies for alleged tax evasion and hawala-like dealings.