West Bengal Passport Fraud: Authorities Investigating PDS Dealers as Key Players in Fake Document Creation
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Kolkata, Dec 20 (NationPress) Officials from various investigative agencies delving into the rackets involved in the issuance of fraudulent Indian passports for illegal Bangladeshi migrants are now focused on tracing the roots of this issue to specific public distribution system (PDS) dealers throughout West Bengal.
According to sources, initial findings suggest that these non-compliant PDS dealers form the foundation of the pyramid structure associated with the production of fake passports.
Describing the criminal methodology, sources indicated that when an illegal Bangladeshi immigrant enters India and reaches out to the agents linked to these rackets, the process of generating counterfeit ration cards for the infiltrator is initiated.
The agents involved in these rackets liaise with local PDS dealers to obtain lists of ration cards that have recently expired, either due to the death of the cardholder or because the rations associated with that card have not been claimed for an extended period. Subsequently, a specific expired card is chosen, and a general diary reporting its loss is filed.
Following this, based on the general diary, the expired card is reinstated, designating the illegal immigrant as the card's beneficiary. This initiates a chain reaction leading to the creation of additional fraudulent Indian documents, starting with EPIC cards, then PAN and AADHAAR cards, and ultimately culminating in fake passports.
Sources revealed that the involvement of errant PDS dealers is fundamental to this pyramid structure, with a segment of the Post Office Passport Seva Kendra (POPSK) representing the apex of this operation.
To date, five individuals have been apprehended in West Bengal in connection with these fake passport rackets, including two who are identified as contractual POPSK staff, named Dipankar Das and Deepak Mondal.
