Bangladeshis that illegally acquire Indian passports via racket get busted: 8 arrested

Mumbai: – Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) of the Mumbai police busted a racket, involved in assisting Bangladeshis to acquire Indian passports using fake documents. Eight people, including 3 Bangladeshis, have been arrested in this connection. This gang has helped 85 Bangladeshis to acquire Indian passports in this manner. Letterheads of lawmakers also have been found with these criminals. Before this, in November, a similar racket had been busted in the Saki Naka area. Names of two agents from Malegaon also had surfaced during the investigation.

Kala Chowki Police received a tipoff regarding one Bangladeshi citizen named Akram Khan. The police sources informed that this Akram Khan was involved in helping acquire fake India identity documents, to other Bangladeshis. He was arrested laying a trap, from the Sewri area. He said, during interrogation, that his real name is Akram Noor Nabi Olauddin Sheikh. Akram confessed that he is a resident of the Novokhali district in Bangladesh. Names of Noorbabi from Wadala and Rafiq Sheikh from Mumbra surfaced during further interrogation. Akram informed that these two were instrumental in making fake Aadhar and PAN cards for him and also acquiring Indian passport on this basis.

Thereafter, Mohammed Rafiq Sayyad was arrested from the Mumbra Kosa area. He confessed to being an agent to prepare fake passports. He said that he has been providing such fake documents to Bangladeshis since 2013. On further investigation, it was revealed that 85 Bangladesh citizens had been issued fake documents till date. During the interrogation of Rafiq Sheikh, the name of Idris Sheikh, involved in preparing fake birth and school leaving certificate, came up. He also was arrested from Mumbra.

One person assisting Idris was picked up from the Antop Hill area in Wadala. Whereas, one person was arrested from Taloja in Navi Mumbai. Both of them were involved in making fake rubber stamps and bank passbooks. Large number of fake identity cards and passports have been seized from these people. The Bangladeshis, who have acquired passports through this route, also are being identified.

Meanwhile, in the last week, a Bangladeshi woman was murdered in Kalamboli. This Bangladeshi woman was staying in India in a living-in relationship and had returned to India after visiting Bangladesh, for a few days, during the lockdown period. The police have arrested two women living with this murdered woman, who also recently returned from Bangladesh.