PANAJI
Goa’s first case of a foreign national benefiting from the Centre’s new policy allowing prosecution to be withdrawn to facilitate deportation has run into an unexpected hurdle. The Russian, an Olympic silver medallist, is refusing to hand over her passport to the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO-Goa Police), even after the government sanctioned funds for her return ticket.
Svetlana Varganova was arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in Goa with a small quantity of drugs in 2023. She was bailed out subsequently. Acting on the Union Home Ministry’s policy to withdraw prosecution in specified minor cases against foreigners, the Judicial Magistrate (Pernem) sanctioned NCB’s plea to withdraw the case.
When The Goan inquired about the delay in deportation after the court allowed withdrawal of the case in July, an FRRO official said they sought government funds to purchase a ticket after she initially expressed inability to pay for one herself. The government soon sanctioned funds to purchase the ticket for her.
However, Varganova later made a U-turn and refused to surrender her passport to the FRRO to facilitate the booking. “She now claims that she will purchase a ticket for herself but only next month,” the official added.
The latest development has left the officials grappling with a further delay. “Normally, when an expired passport is recovered from a foreign national found to be staying illegally, the local authorities facilitate its renewal and retain custody of the document for further legal formalities. In this case, her passport had expired and was not even in her possession,” the official said.
“As a result, the embassy issued a new passport directly to her, as is done in similar cases. But she has taken advantage of this,” he added, explaining how she has been misusing the system.
The case has exposed the practical challenges arising in the implementation of the Centre’s policy. While the criminal proceedings have been cleared out of the way, the deportation process has now come to depend on the cooperation of the foreign national herself.
Court records available with The Goan reveal that Varganova’s case was placed before the NCB’s Internal Screening Committee at its April 8 meeting. After examining the facts and circumstances, the committee concluded the matter qualified for withdrawal of prosecution under the new policy and recommended that proceedings be dropped. The recommendation was subsequently approved by the NCB Director General.
Judicial Magistrate First Class Shabnam Nagvekar allowed the application under Section 360 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, permitting withdrawal of prosecution. This paved the way for her deportation.
Yet, despite judicial clearance, the athlete continues to remain at the detention centre for want of her cooperation in completing the deportation formalities.
Sources said that FRRO officials -- who hitherto sought to resolve the issue administratively -- have contemplated stricter legal action, subject to approval from the State and Central governments. “We are following the law and will do that even in future. Since she is not cooperating, we will take harsh action in compliance with the law,” the source said.
