Delhi court permits US citizen, six Ukrainians arrested by NIA to travel abroad for a month

A Delhi court on Thursday allowed a US citizen and six Ukrainian nationals, arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in March over alleged links with ethnic armed groups in Myanmar hostile to India, to travel to their respective countries for one month, The Hindu reported.

The accused, including US national Matthew Aaron Van Dyke, were arrested on March 13. The NIA alleged that they had supplied weapons and military equipment to ethnic armed groups operating in Myanmar and provided training to their members.

The decision comes against the backdrop of the continued incarceration of activists Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, whose bail pleas in the 2020 Delhi riots larger conspiracy case were rejected by the Supreme Court in January 2026. The two have remained in custody for nearly six years without the conclusion of their trial.

Meanwhile, concerns have been raised over the repeated denial of medical bail to now-banned Popular Front of India (PFI) leader E. Abubacker, who has been incarcerated as an undertrial prisoner in Delhi’s Tihar Jail since September 22, 2022.

On September 8, the agency filed a chargesheet against the seven foreigners under the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, accusing them of illegally entering, staying in and travelling through India, Scroll.in reported.

Although the arrests were made under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the chargesheet filed by the agency focused on alleged immigration violations.

According to investigators, the accused had entered India on valid visas but later travelled to Mizoram without obtaining the mandatory restricted area permit. They were also accused of crossing into Myanmar and meeting ethnic groups considered hostile to India.

Officials further alleged that the individuals received drone deliveries from Europe while they were in Mizoram.

The seven were reportedly arrested in Delhi, Kolkata and Lucknow while attempting to leave the country.

Van Dyke was granted default bail on September 18, while the six Ukrainian nationals secured bail on Wednesday. Default bail is granted when an investigating agency fails to complete its investigation and file a chargesheet within the legally prescribed period while an accused remains in custody.

While granting bail to Van Dyke, the court had directed him to remain in Delhi and appear before the NIA whenever he was summoned for questioning.

During Thursday’s hearing, the accused sought permission to travel abroad to meet their families, stating that they had not seen them for nearly 10 months. They had requested permission to stay outside India for six weeks, but the court restricted the period to one month from the date of their departure, according to The Hindu.

The NIA did not provide details during the hearing on whether the accused would need to be physically present in India in the immediate future as part of the investigation.

The court directed all seven individuals to cooperate with the NIA whenever required, either by appearing in person or through video conferencing. They were also instructed to submit their residential addresses and contact numbers.

The accused must return to India after one month and notify the court of their return within 72 hours.