Bhopal STF arrests two in fake passport racket; alleged kingpin Palash Chaudhari absconding

The probe into an alleged fake passport racket has resumed. The Special Task Force (STF) in Bhopal has recently arrested two people in the case. During questioning, the name of Palash Bipin Chaudhari of Nagpur emerged as the alleged mastermind. The Bhopal STF is now working with the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) unit in Nagpur to trace the absconding accused.

The two men arrested are accused of trying to get fake Indian passports made. During questioning, they allegedly named Palash Bipin Chaudhari as the mastermind. According to them, it was Palash who helped them enter India through the open India-Bangladesh border in Tripura and then brought them to Bhopal.

Palash is accused of helping more than 250 Bangladeshi nationals enter India, obtain fake Indian documents and settle in different cities. According to sources, he fled Nagpur in September. At the time, the Bhopal STF had come to Nagpur looking for him and Joison Chaudhari, another suspected trafficker. Palash's location was traced first to West Bengal and then to Tripura. Investigators believe he may have crossed the open border into Bangladesh.

Nagpur Police suspect that Palash made Nagpur his base while also maintaining contacts in Madhya Pradesh (Bhopal), West Bengal, Telangana (Hyderabad) and Bengaluru (Karnataka). Sources said Nagpur ATS had arrested him in 2023, when an investigation uncovered a racket involving the illegal bringing in of people and the making of fake passports.

Palash is alleged to have helped some Bangladeshi nationals disguise themselves as Buddhist monks to avoid suspicion. He is suspected of bringing them in through the Northeast and taking some of them to Bihar. There, they were allegedly trained to look like monks and then sent to Nagpur and other cities. Sources claim around 50 Bangladeshi nationals were brought to Nagpur under this arrangement.

Investigators are also examining allegations that Palash charged up to Rs 2 lakh per person for illegal entry into India, accommodation and Indian ID cards. The process of manipulating documents involved renting houses, using rent agreements and utility bills as proof of address, and then obtaining Aadhaar cards, bank accounts, PAN cards and passports.

Investigators suspect these documents were used to create fake Indian identities. Sources also said the network may have helped get at least 250 fake Indian passports made. The beneficiaries were then sent to different parts of India. Some travelled abroad using their new identities. Two illegal migrants were also caught at Hyderabad airport.

In his statement, Palash allegedly admitted that he had come to India illegally from Bangladesh in 2012 and had helped some acquaintances obtain Indian documents. An official said Palash also told investigators that he had used local contacts and addresses to help with passport applications. Investigators are now examining the network's connections across several states, the extent of the passport fraud and the role of other suspects involved.