Kolkata: A 61-year-old retired policeman was arrested from his residence in North 24 Parganas on Friday night in connection with the recent fake passport racket under investigation by Kolkata Police.
A senior police officer said that the accused, Abdul Hai, a former sub-inspector of Kolkata Police, was previously assigned as an enquiry officer for passport verification.
“Preliminary investigations revealed that Hai verified more than 50 passports, which were later found to be fake. The court has remanded him to police custody until January 18. Further investigation is ongoing,” he said.
The officer added that nine people have been arrested so far, and Hai’s name surfaced during the interrogation of some of them.
During interrogation, some of the accused claimed that Hai allegedly accepted at least ₹25,000 for verifying fake passports.
“We have identified some suspicious bank transactions. Several digital evidences have been seized and will be sent for forensic analysis,” the officer added.
Hai’s family, however, denied the allegations. “My uncle retired recently and was posted at the Kolkata Police headquarters for several years. We know him to be an honest man,” said Hai’s nephew.
{{/usCountry}}Hai’s family, however, denied the allegations. “My uncle retired recently and was posted at the Kolkata Police headquarters for several years. We know him to be an honest man,” said Hai’s nephew.
{{/usCountry}}Also read: Strengthen passport verification to counter rising rackets: WB Police to MEA
Police said that investigations are ongoing to determine whether other policemen were involved in the racket.
Meanwhile, the state police have written to the ministry of external affairs (MEA), requesting measures to strengthen the passport verification and delivery system. Investigations revealed that over 70 fake Indian passports were issued using forged documents and sold for ₹2 lakh to ₹5 lakh, mostly to Bangladeshi nationals, who used these forged passports to travel to other countries.