Nearly 200 people who paid almost Rs60 million in hopes of securing overseas work visas say they were defrauded by a Lahore-based travel and visa consultancy, prompting a protest outside the Lahore Press Club.
The 187 alleged victims accused Skill Bridge Travel Tours and Visa Consultants, based in Singhpura, Lahore, of taking their money under false pretences.
According to the complainants, company owners Usman and Javed-ur-Rehman promised them work visas for Azerbaijan, collected hundreds of thousands of rupees from each applicant, and then allegedly went missing along with the funds.
The victims come from across Pakistan, including Lahore, Faisalabad, Karachi and Sukkur. Beyond visa processing fees, the company is also accused of charging separately for passports and air tickets without ever delivering on those services.
Complainants said they filed applications with the Federal Investigation Agencys Anti-Human Trafficking Wing nearly two months ago, including a formal request addressed to the Additional Director of the wing, but no action has been taken since.
They have called on the government and Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi to order the immediate arrest of Usman and Javed-ur-Rehman, and to freeze the accuseds identity cards, passports and bank accounts to prevent them from fleeing the country with the money.
