KOCHI: While Operation Clean Perumbavoor aimed at cracking down on illegal activities, including apprehending Bangladeshi nationals staying in the state without legal documents, is in full swing, the Ernakulam rural police on Monday busted a fake Aadhaar card making unit operating in Perumbavoor, on Monday.
The illegal operation was being run under the guise of a mobile shop named ‘Assam Mobile Shop,’ located on the ground floor of a shopping complex near the Perumbavoor private bus stand. In connection with the incident, the shop owners Harijul Islam, 26, and Raihanudheen, 20, both residents of Juria in Assam’s Nagaon district, were arrested by a special probe team led by Perumbavoor ASP Shakti Singh Arya.
The preliminary investigation suggests that the suspects were creating and distributing fake documents, especially for migrant workers, said a police officer involved in the operation.
“The raid was conducted based on a tip-off received by district police chief Vaibhav Saxena. Following the raid, we seized several forged Aadhaar cards from the shop, along with laptops, printers, mobile phones, and `50,000 in cash,” he said. He added that are trying to find out individuals who used these forged documents to stay illegally in the state.
Explaining the modus operandi, ASP Shakti Singh Arya said, “The suspects used to manipulate genuine Aadhaar cards or their copies, modifying names, details, and altering a few digits of the unique ID number before replacing the original photograph with that of the individual seeking the forged document.”
Preliminary investigation revealed that the fake Aadhaar cards were primarily used by migrant labourers to book railway tickets. However, we are yet to confirm whether they were also used to obtain SIM cards or other official documents, Arya said. “We are currently investigating the involvement of other individuals and identifying those who acquired these fake Aadhaar cards,” Arya added.
Additionally, six individuals, including a Keralite, were arrested for heroin trafficking, while seven others were taken into custody for selling cannabis, as part of the raid. Eleven people were also detained for consuming alcohol in public places, and another eleven were apprehended for selling banned tobacco products.