Maharashtra government to constitute SIT to probe Nagpur passport, visa scam

Authorities suspect that those involved in the scam may have trafficked youth between 18 and 24 years of age to the UK.

The Maharashtra state government will constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the fake passport and visa scam which was exposed by the United Kingdom (UK) authorities. Authorities suspect that those involved in the scam may have trafficked youth between 18 and 24 years of age to the UK.

60 youth from Nagpur are missing after going to the UK on business or tourist visas. (HT FILE)

The decision to constitute an SIT was announced in the state legislative council by Minister of State for Home, Ranjit Patil. Members of the council demanded before the government to put an end on human trafficking.

Addressing the members of the council, Patil said, “We will constitute an SIT to probe this case. The police are already investigating the case and have made some arrests related to it.”

The racket is considered to be one of the biggest rackets which have been exposed in central India. It came into light after the Immigration Enforcement International (IEI), a wing of the British High Commission, sent a detailed report to Nagpur Police in October 2017. There were about 60 youth who went to the UK between 2007 and 2015 but did not come back.

Girishchandra Vyas, member of the legislative council from the BJP, said, “This is a huge racket where innocent youth were used by vested interests. There is a widespread nexus at work which should be weeded out,” said Vyas.

According to police, those involved in the racket would pose as couples and target youngsters who wanted to go abroad. Each ‘couple’ would take at least one youngster with them to the UK on a tourist or business visa posing as their child, for which they would submit forged documents. The couple would then return to India, but the youngsters who would go along with them never returned.