Kolkata Police Uncovers Fake Passport Network: POPSK Staff Database Reveals Recipients
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Kolkata, Dec 19 (NationPress) The database obtained from the devices of Dipankar Das, a contracted staff member of the Post Office Passport Seva Kendra (POPSK), who was detained by the Kolkata Police on Wednesday in relation to a counterfeit passport operation, has equipped investigating authorities with essential details about the recipients of the fraudulent Indian identity papers.
According to sources familiar with the case, the database extracted from Das's devices has revealed the names of approximately 30,000 individuals for whom Das fabricated fake Indian identity documents, predominantly forged passports.
The authorities have disseminated the information regarding these individuals to their colleagues at the police station level to facilitate tracking their locations.
Reports indicate that many of the recipients of these counterfeit Indian identity documents, including the forged passports, were illegal immigrants from neighboring Bangladesh.
The investigators believe that numerous individuals are still living in various regions of the country, including West Bengal, due to the possession of these fraudulent documents.
Das, who was implicated in the scheme along with another suspect, S. Biswas, was primarily tasked with creating such fake identity documents from a modest office he operated out of his home in Behala, located on the southern outskirts of Kolkata.
In addition to the counterfeit Indian identity documents, officials also confiscated forged documents from two prominent public sector banks and visas from a specific European nation.
Since last Sunday, a total of five individuals have been arrested across various areas of West Bengal in connection with the fake passport operations.
Among the five apprehended, two are POPSK staff members, including Das and Deepak Mondal.
Investigators suspect that beyond the contractual staff, some permanent employees of the Indian Postal Department may also be linked to these operations, which are primarily based in villages near the state's international borders with Bangladesh, both land and maritime.
