Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The probe into a suspected fake passport racket has uncovered another layer of forgery, with police finding that counterfeit birth certificates purportedly issued by the Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC) were used to obtain passports.
A police team visited BMC's Birth and Death Registration Branch on Thursday to verify five certificates submitted during the passport process. Officials examined records for nearly two hours and provided documents sought by police.
Following the verification, BMC has begun cross-checking certificates issued during the months concerned.
Officials said the five certificates closely resembled genuine documents. However, their QR and bar codes could not be scanned.
A genuine certificate's QR code, when scanned on a smartphone, redirects users to BMC's official website, where its details can be verified.
Officials recalled a similar case last year when a fake certificate's QR code redirected users to a fraudulent website designed to resemble the official portal.
5 fake birth certificates
Name of applicant
Documents submitted for verification
1. KISHAN SAHA s/o NANDA DULAL SHAH & RUMA SAHA
2. LAVLU CHOWDHURY s/o PANKAJ KUMAR CHOWDHURY
3. ARNOB SING s/o DHARMITRA SING
4. VIJAY ATULKAR s/o DIGVIJAY ATULKAR
5. ROHIT SING s/o DHARMMITRA SING
birth certificate-09-90347-00828
birth certificate-23-90347-004193
birth certificate-9-90347-007779
birth certificate-9-90347-003504
birth certificate-9-90347-003968
39 passports linked to monastery address
The investigation began after authorities found that 30 passports had allegedly been issued using the address of Buddha Vihar Colony at Simariya Tekri in Dabra.
The probe later expanded to Ashok Buddha Vihar, a Buddhist monastery in Anna Nagar, Govindpura, where another 39 passports were reportedly issued using the same address.
According to the Special Task Force (STF), the passports were issued in 2021, 2022 and 2023. The matter surfaced during an investigation into people who had allegedly migrated from Bangladesh to India.
Relate to passports issued in 2021, 2022 and 2023. The matter surfaced during an investigation into people who had allegedly migrated from Bangladesh to India.
Official Statement
Satyaprakash Badgainya, Registrar of BMC's Birth and Death Registration Branch, told Free Press that the certificates examined by the Corporation were fake.
He said the signatures attributed to the then registrar did not correspond with the officer's tenure as registrar, further establishing that the documents were forged.
The BMC has also submitted a formal communication to Govindpura police regarding its findings.
