Military Intelligence, Police Crack Aadhaar Forgery Racket in Darjeeling
Darjeeling, 9th November 2024: A major document forgery racket, involving the creation of fake Aadhaar cards and passports, was busted in Batasi village near Panitanki, Darjeeling district, during a joint operation conducted by Army’s Military Intelligence (MI), Sukna, and the West Bengal Police on November 8, 2024.
The operation led to the arrest of Sanay Sarkar, a resident of Batasi, who is allegedly at the center of the forgery racket. Alongside Sarkar, four Nepalese nationals were detained from his shop during the raid.
Authorities suspect that Sarkar had been forging identity documents for Bangladeshi and Nepalese nationals, enabling them to obtain legitimate Aadhaar cards and Indian passports.
The security team seized two personal computers, a smartphone, and several photocopies of documents belonging to various individuals during the raid. These digital and physical artifacts will undergo detailed cyber forensic analysis by the police to track the full scope of the illegal activity.
According to preliminary statements provided by the detained Nepalese nationals, they paid ₹10,000 each to Sarkar in exchange for forged Aadhaar cards. Authorities have initiated the process to deport them back to Nepal.
Interrogation of Sarkar has revealed the involvement of two more individuals in the racket, one residing in Chopda, North Dinajpur district, and the other in Dhupguri, Jalpaiguri district. The information has been passed on to police officials in the respective districts, and operations are underway to apprehend these individuals.
Further questioning of Sarkar is ongoing, and authorities expect to unearth more details about the scope of the racket in the coming days.
