Ex-maid sentenced to jail for false declaration acquitted on appeal

Evidence presented during the trial did not support the charge, says High Court judge

- Selina Lum

A former domestic helper from India who was sentenced to 10 weeks’ jail in 2023 for making a false statement in a work pass application has been acquitted by the High Court after she appealed against her conviction.

Ms Alka, 44, who goes by one name, had contested a charge under the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act for falsely declaring that she was employed by Mr Anil Tripathi as a foreign domestic worker when she “did not have the intention to be employed as such”.

The district judge who convicted her found that there was an agreement between Ms Alka and Mr Anil for their mutual benefit – he would be listed as her employer, allowing her to stay in Singapore with her boyfriend, while she would cook for him three to four times a week.

In her appeal, her lawyer, Mr Sarbrinder Singh of Sanders Law, argued that there was no false declaration as Ms Alka had indeed worked for Mr Anil.

On July 25, High Court Justice Aedit Abdullah allowed the appeal and overturned her conviction.

The judge determined that her declaration was not false after considering the meaning of what amounted to “employment” under the Act.