STATE TIMES NEWS
New Delhi: A retired Navy official and another person were arrested after a major fake driving licence module was uncovered in Gujarat with links to Jammu and Kashmir where they forged the documents using details of security forces, officials said on Saturday.
The fake driving licence racket, which was active in Ahmedabad for nearly four years, was busted by the crime branch of the Gujarat Police based on inputs from the Southern Command Military Intelligence, they said.
The officials said 284 driving licences, 97 service motor driving license books, nine fake rubber stamps, three laptops, four mobile phones, 37 ‘No-Objection’ certificates, nine serving certificates, five confirmation letters, 27 ‘speed post’ stickers and digital pens were seized from the accused.
A case was registered and further investigation is on, they said, indicating that more arrests are likely soon.
Earlier, the country’s biggest arms licence scam was detected in Jammu and Kashmir in 2017 which is currently being investigated by the CBI. The federal agency registered the first set of FIRs on October 16, 2018, in connection with alleged irregularities in the grant of 2.78 lakh arms licences in 22 districts during 2012-16.
The officials said the Army’s Southern Command Military Intelligence busted the driving licence scam, leading to the arrest of Santosh Singh, who was employed with the Indian Navy from 1991 to 2012, and Dhaval Rawat, an RTO agent in Gandhinagar who used to provide driving licences to individuals of Jammu and Kashmir on the basis of fake certificates of security forces.
The accused, who were apprehended on Friday, revealed that they have supplied more than 1,000 driving licences to their handlers, the officials said, adding they used to work on the behest of Ishfaq, Waseem and Nassar Mir, who are based in Uri, where they reportedly run a driving school.
The officials said the accused also revealed that they earned more than Rs 50 lakh this year alone, though they were active for nearly four years.
“Obtaining a driving licence on fake documents belonging to security agencies is a matter of grave concern as these driving licences can further be used for obtaining other official documents like passports by inimical persons. The module could also have been exploited to make fake driving licences of illegal Bangladeshi migrants,” an official privy to the probe said.
He said Singh, originally from Madhya Pradesh, started making driving licences for soldiers of various battalions of the security forces in Gandhinagar.
During this time, he was contacted by the three Jammu and Kashmir residents and some others and was asked to forge driving licences using details of jawans and security forces battalions, the official said.
“Singh has been making licences for security forces for the past several years and knows very well what documents are required. His contacts in Jammu and Kashmir used to send the Aadhaar card and the photo of the person whose driving licence is to be made,” he said. The official added that Singh ordered a coin-making machine online to forge coins for various battalions.
Rawat worked with Singh for two years and knew how he was making fake driving licences, he said.
In order to avoid having to appear in person for document verification and live photo taking, applicants used to get driving licences by paying middlemen at the RTO office, the official said, adding the licences were delivered to Ayan Umar, who forged RTO ‘No-Objection’ certificates to change the addresses to Jammu and Kashmir.