An Indian man sentenced to jail for seven years in Dubai has been granted bail. He has been accused of carrying banned medicines.
Habeeb Mohammad, a resident of Hyderabad, India, though released from jail, cannot leave Dubai until the final judgement in the case. A local leader of Hyderabad Amjedullah Khan has urged Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj to intervene in the matter and take measures for the acquittal of Mohammad.
The ordeal of Mohammad started when he went to Dubai to take up a job at A1 Tower General Land Transport. As he landed at the Dubai airport on October 27, 2016, he was arrested by the Dubai Police for carrying a parcel containing Lyrica 150 mg tablets, which is a banned drug in Dubai.
A day earlier on October 26, 2016, Aidroos Al Aidroos, a friend of Mohammad, met him and handed over the packet to him. He was asked to deliver the packet to Habeeb Aidroos Shoeb in Dubai.
The parents of Mohammad has also written a letter to Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on January 28, 2017 narrating the entire sequence of events. They also demanded intervention of the Minister to bring their son back to the country. They explained how their son was detained at the airport and later sentenced to one year in prison. The authority also imposed a fine of AED20,000 to him. The court has also banned his lifetime entry into Dubai.
However, the Dubai police, who were not satisfied with the sentence, appealed in a higher court for a harsher punishment for him. The higher court awarded Habeeb Mohammed seven years imprisonment and a fine of AED50,000 along with a life ban on his entry into Dubai.
Meanwhile, leader Khan, said, “Habeeb's lawyers have appealed against the sentence. While the appeal is being heard, the court on Monday also granted him bail."
