Latest news with #ECNR
Time of India
3 days ago
- Time of India
CBI arrests official & agent in 7 fake Tatkaal passports case
Mumbai: The CBI has arrested a passport official and an agent after it was allegedly found that seven passports were issued on the basis of fake documents, and five of the passport holders have left the country, raising security concerns. The investigation showed that the identity of the seven passport holders is not clear. "It is a grave security concern that the seven passports have been issued fresh in the Tatkaal mode," CBI said in the remand application. The CBI produced the arrested accused before the court Wednesday for their remand and informed the court that the duo facilitated passport issuance for "seven unknown persons purporting as Raj Pareshkumar Prajapati, Sameer Parvez Shaikh, Mumtaz Parvez Shaikh, Nipa Tushar Shah, Roshni Shah, Tushar Prakash Shah and Jay Vishnubhai Prajapati... The seven unknown persons had submitted forged documents such as Aadhaar and PAN card copies, bank statements and birth certificates in token of their address and identity proof in the passport office". Further, passports in the name of Nipa Tushar Shah, Tushar Prakash Shah and Jay Vishnubhai Prajapati have been issued in the ECNR mode (Emigration Check Not Required)," CBI said. The court granted the CBI custody of the accused until June 2. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 5 Books Warren Buffett Wants You to Read In 2025 Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo In July last year, the CBI, with the assistance of RPO Mumbai officials and the vigilance department, conducted surprise inspections at the Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) centres in Malad and Lower Parel. One arrested individual, Akshay Meena, served as a verification officer at the Lower Parel PSK. He allegedly maintained regular contact with agents and received illegal payments for facilitating passport issuance. The investigation showed his involvement in issuing passports to seven individuals and sharing illegal payments with colleagues. The CBI's examination of WhatsApp communications between Meena and other accused allegedly showed discussions about payments and coordination regarding the seven suspicious passport applications.
The Hindu
15-05-2025
- The Hindu
Two arrested for human trafficking
Two members of a human trafficking ring that targeted vulnerable individuals from Andhra Pradesh were arrested by the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) police and Shamshabad Special Operations Team (SOT). Following a tip-off, Chilukuri Balaji, 43, and Sunkara Shiva Kumar, 30, were arrested from a hotel in Nampally. The police seized 14 tampered visas and passports, police clearance certificates (PCCs), 16 flight tickets, and other incriminating documents. The scam came to light on May 13 following a complaint by Gandikota Venkata Ramana, a 38-year-old resident of West Godavari, Andhra Pradesh, who stated that the Kuwait visa, issued on a tourist basis, was tampered with to conceal the real travel purpose. The complainant was one of eight women lured with promises of lucrative jobs in Kuwait, only to realise at RGIA that the passport had been illegally altered, showing a 'cancelled' visa stamp to mislead immigration officers. Investigations revealed that Balaji and Shiva Kumar, both self-styled Gulf travel agents, were running a widespread network of sub-agents across Andhra Pradesh and Mumbai. Operating under Srinivasa Global Recruits, the duo forged travel documents, tampered with visas, and coordinated with medical diagnostic centres in Hyderabad to process pre-departure formalities. After collecting victim's passports, fraudsters also arranged accommodation near Nampally before transporting them to Rajiv Gandhi International Airport for travel. Their modus operandi involved two levels - they stamped genuine work visas with a fake 'cancelled' imprint and paired them with tourist visas and round-trip tickets, to fool immigration at departure; second - they removed cancellation marks and presented original work documents, police clearance certificates (PCCs) and boarding passes at the point of entry in the Gulf countries. Victims were instructed to destroy all tourist-related documents mid-journey to avoid detection. Balaji collected ₹5,000 and ₹8,000 from the victims in the form of fee for visa, medical clearances and flight bookings. Police also said that sub-agents paid as much as ₹60,000 per person, out of which the accused retained ₹5,000 to ₹8,000 as commission. The scam exploited gaps in emigration protocols. While ECNR (Emigration Check Not Required) passport holders can travel with original work visas and PCCs, ECR (Emigration Check Required) holders require additional documents including a POE (Protector of Emigrants) clearance. The accused bypassed these regulations, sending people on tourist visas without job contracts or insurance, exposing them to exploitation abroad. Further investigation and efforts to trace the remaining accused are underway.
Time of India
28-04-2025
- Time of India
Three arrested for making fake marksheet
Indore: Three persons were arrested on Monday for allegedly making fake marksheets to prepare passport under ECNR category. "In the context of Indian passports, ECR stands for Emigration Check Required, while ECNR stands for Emigration Check Not Required. ECR passports are typically issued to individuals who haven't completed their 10th standard and may be more vulnerable to exploitation when traveling abroad for employment. ECNR passports are for those who have completed their 10th standard or higher, and are generally exempt from emigration clearance requirements," DCP Abhinay Vishwakarma said. The DCP said that the accused had MP Online Kiosk and under the guise of operating an open university, they provided study materials to the applicant and held 'exams' before issuing them 10th class marksheet. "One of the persons, whom the accused had issued the marksheet, had made a complaint after his application to prepare the passport under ECNR category got rejected," the senior police official said. A police team was formed by Khajrana police station in-charge Manoj Singh Sendhav, which gathered intelligence on persons involved in the illegal activities . During this process, the police caught a cyber cafe operator Javed Khan, who was involved in creating fake marksheets. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like If you have a mouse, play this game for 1 minute Navy Quest Undo The police team searched the cyber cafe and found hundreds of fake marksheets. A case was registered against Khan of Srinagar Kakad, and he was taken into custody. During the interrogation, the names of other persons involved in the racket surfaced. Remaining two accused were identified as Mohammad Azharuddin and Mohammad Riyaz, residents of Hina Palace, and they were arrested. "The arrested accused are being interrogated to uncover the involvement of other individuals in this racket. Further legal action will be taken based on the information obtained during the ongoing investigation," Vishwakarma said.
