Malabar Hill police are investigating how Byram Jeejeebhoy, who holds a US citizenship, obtained an Indian voter identity card
By Abhijit Sathe & Manoj R Nair / Mumbai Mirror
Byram Jeejeebhoy, great-grandson of Mumbai’s best-known philanthropist, Sir Jamshedji Jeejeebhoy, was detained at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport on Wednesday following a lookout notice issued against him by Malabar Hill police station.
Sixty-year-old Byram Jeejeebhoy, who holds a US citizenship, was booked in August this year for cheating and violating the Representation of the People Act. According to a complaint from the Special Branch, Jeejeebhoy had obtained a voter identity card in India. As a US citizen, he is not entitled to do so.
According to police sources, Jeejeebhoy was allegedly unavailable for police investigations as he was in the United Kingdom for medical treatment.
As a result, a lookout notice was issued at all major airports in India on the request of the Malabar Hill police station.
On Wednesday, Jeejeebhoy was detained at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport immigration counters on his way back from the UK. The immigration department informed the Malabar Hill police, who took him into custody.
However, the Malabar Hill police did not arrest Jeejeebhoy as is customary in such cases.
Instead, he was asked to appear before the police along with documents in his defence.
“We have served him a notice advising him to appear for investigations along with documents in his defence. We don’t know if he did it (obtained voter identity card) deliberately, or someone has framed him in the case,” Malabar Hill police station senior inspector S K Gaikwad told Mumbai Mirror.
Jeejeebhoy is involved with numerous Parsi charities, including the Jeejeebhoy Dadabhoy Agiary in Colaba where he is a trustee.
Other institutions run by the family include Byramjee Jeejeebhoy School, Nanabhoy Jeejeebhoy Charity Trust amd Byramjee Jeejeebhoy Medical College in Pune. He had once contested elections to the Bombay Parsi Panchayat. The family is also one of the biggest landowners in the city.
When contacted, Byram Jeejeebhoy declined to comment on the issue.
Jeejeebhoy stays in Gamdevi, in south Mumbai, and holds a US passport. The Special Branch of Mumbai police, which keeps a tab on foreign nationals, found that Jeejeebhoy had obtained a voter identity card in India although as a foreign national, he was not entitled to.
On the basis of the complaint from Special Branch, the Malabar Hill police registered a case of cheating (Section 417 of IPC) and cheating by impersonation (Section 419 of IPC), besides under Section 31 of the Representation of the People Act.
Certainly breaking the law is not good. However, we must ask ourselves, why does India not allow dual citizenship in the first place? Imagine how beneficial this would be to the country. How many more educated former Indians would consider returning “home” if nationality were not a problem.
In many nations, the United States in particular where I currently live, so many professional Indians (and Chinese) are returning to their nations of origin. They bring with them their higher educations, their technical and business knowledge, their “wealth”. Indeed, India should do its utmost to welcome such people, not to shut them out.
In fact, if India is ever to become a REAl superpower, then such return immigration will be necessary. To the Indian government I say, allow dual citizenship, deekra. So many countries do with no ill effect. This way everyone prospers.
Also allow more nonIndians, in particular those with higher education, to obtain permanent residency and citizenship. Spur the opening up of the country, not only in terms of capital flows but in terms of people as well.
Jai Hind!
Certainly breaking the law is not good. However, we must ask ourselves, why does India not allow dual citizenship in the first place? Imagine how beneficial this would be to the country. How many more educated former Indians would consider returning “home” if nationality were not a problem.
In many nations, the United States in particular where I currently live, so many professional Indians (and Chinese) are returning to their nations of origin. They bring with them their higher educations, their technical and business knowledge, their “wealth”. Indeed, India should do its utmost to welcome such people, not to shut them out.
In fact, if India is ever to become a REAl superpower, then such return immigration will be necessary. To the Indian government I say, allow dual citizenship, deekra. So many countries do with no ill effect. This way everyone prospers.
Also allow more nonIndians, in particular those with higher education, to obtain permanent residency and citizenship. Spur the opening up of the country, not only in terms of capital flows but in terms of people as well.
Jai Hind!
How Byram Jeejibhoy commit such a stupid error is beyond anyones comprehension. As Silloo Kapadia rightly says India should allow dual citizenship which would solve all such problems which gives a handle to corrupt Indian Officials to extract monies on such flimsy grounds.
iNDEED,I CAN NOT BELIEVE YET THAT WHATEVER I KNOW ABOUT BYRAMJI AND HOPE AND TRUST THIS NEWS MIGHT BE WRONG AND TRUTH NEVER HIDE BUT I STILL NOT BE SURE ABOUT WHATEVER I READ IN NEWS.I AM DEEPLY HEART AND SAD BECAUSE I HAVE NEVER HEARD OR KNOW ABOUT ANY PARSI BROTHER AND SISTER DOING ANYTHING WRONG AND WHCIH ALWAYS MULTIPLIES MY RESPECT FOR PARSIS AND MY RESPECT FOR PARSIS WILL NEVER CHANGE..
WELLWISHER.
How Byram Jeejibhoy commit such a stupid error is beyond anyones comprehension. As Silloo Kapadia rightly says India should allow dual citizenship which would solve all such problems which gives a handle to corrupt Indian Officials to extract monies on such flimsy grounds.
iNDEED,I CAN NOT BELIEVE YET THAT WHATEVER I KNOW ABOUT BYRAMJI AND HOPE AND TRUST THIS NEWS MIGHT BE WRONG AND TRUTH NEVER HIDE BUT I STILL NOT BE SURE ABOUT WHATEVER I READ IN NEWS.I AM DEEPLY HEART AND SAD BECAUSE I HAVE NEVER HEARD OR KNOW ABOUT ANY PARSI BROTHER AND SISTER DOING ANYTHING WRONG AND WHCIH ALWAYS MULTIPLIES MY RESPECT FOR PARSIS AND MY RESPECT FOR PARSIS WILL NEVER CHANGE..
WELLWISHER.
I do Not agree wit it, as you said that India is on the way to Super Power, i fully agree with it that yes india is going to be the Most Super Power in coming years.
As about allowing dual citizenship as the United States has done, but at the same time what happened in United States in 001 when the Terrorists strike in the staes.
Also India is surrounded by its enemies on all the sides, what if any Terrorist becomes Citizen & then carry out the worst as it is there for everybody to see what had been done in mu,mbai attack.
I would certainly is not in favour of dual citozenship.
Its like that you leaves your mother who has given you all the love that you needed & then all of a sudden you leave her.
Ronnie.
I do Not agree wit it, as you said that India is on the way to Super Power, i fully agree with it that yes india is going to be the Most Super Power in coming years.
As about allowing dual citizenship as the United States has done, but at the same time what happened in United States in 001 when the Terrorists strike in the staes.
Also India is surrounded by its enemies on all the sides, what if any Terrorist becomes Citizen & then carry out the worst as it is there for everybody to see what had been done in mu,mbai attack.
I would certainly is not in favour of dual citozenship.
Its like that you leaves your mother who has given you all the love that you needed & then all of a sudden you leave her.
Ronnie.