Mumbai crime branch arrests couple for forging documents for illegal Bangladeshi immigrants
The arrested accused were identified as Purushottam Prasad Sharma (57) and his wife Manju Purushottam Sharma alias Manju alias Altaf Shaikh (42), residents of Malad (West).
According to officials, the duo was involved in fabricating Aadhaar cards, PAN cards, voter IDs, and bank documents to facilitate the illegal stay of Bangladeshi nationals in India. Acting on a tip-off, a team from unit 11 of the crime branch raided the couple's residence at Sai Savli Co-operative Housing Society, New MHADA Colony, on Friday and recovered a huge pile of documents.
During the search, police recovered a laptop, four mobile phones with SIM cards, forged identity documents including two Aadhaar cards in different names, two PAN cards, and a voter ID linked to Manju Sharma. Officials also seized bank passbooks, cheque books, and a red-coloured pen drive believed to contain data related to the racket's operations.
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Investigations revealed that Manju Sharma, originally a Bangladeshi national, was living illegally in India for the past 12 years under a forged identity.
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She entered India with the help of an agent and later married Purushottam Sharma, who allegedly assisted her in obtaining Indian identity documents by fraudulent means.
Police suspect that the accused were part of a larger network assisting Bangladeshi nationals in fabricating Indian citizenship documents to settle illegally in the country. The accused also had contacts with agents operating in Bangladesh, as evidenced by transaction records and call data retrieved from their devices.
"The modus operandi involved creating forged Aadhaar and PAN cards using fake credentials and opening bank accounts in Indian financial institutions. This documentation was then used by illegal immigrants to claim Indian citizenship and avail public services," a Crime Branch official said.
Both accused were arrested on Saturday under Sections 318 (4), 336 (2), 336 (3), 338, 340 (2), 61 (2), 249, 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with charges under the Passport Act, Foreigners Act, and Foreigners Order. The duo was produced before the court on Saturday and remanded to police custody.
Police are now probing the possible involvement of other agents and middlemen in the racket and suspect a wider interstate and cross-border network facilitating illegal immigration through document forgery.
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