12 arrested as cops bust gang involved in illegal immigration from Bangladesh
Twelve illegal immigrants living in Delhi-NCR and Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh were involved in preparing forged Indian IDs, officers aware of the probe said.
The Delhi Police on Tuesday said they have arrested 12 people, including five illegal Bangladeshi migrants after they busted an “organised immigration syndicate” that helped Bangladeshi citizens illegally enter India and acquire Indian identities after associates helped them prepare Indian IDs such as Aadhar and Voter cards using forged documents.
The five arrested illegal migrants were living in Delhi and Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh, while the seven Indian nationals were residents of Delhi and Noida who were involved in preparing forged Indian IDs, officers aware of the probe said.
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Investigators said they stumbled upon the illegal immigration racket while probing the murder of a man, Sentu Sheikh alias Raja, in south Delhi’s Sangam Vihar on October 21. Officers arrested two Bangladeshi couples illegally residing in India and recovered fake Indian IDs such as 21 Aadhar Cards, four voter ID cards and eight PAN cards from the residence of the dead man.
The probe began when a woman reported her husband, Sheikh, lying unconscious at their Sangam Vihar residence. An autopsy confirmed strangulation as the cause of death, prompting police to register a case of murder. Investigators arrested two Bangladeshi couples — Midul Miyan alias Akash Ahmed and his wife, and Fardeen Ahmed alias Abhi Ahmed and his wife — who confessed to killing Sheikh over unpaid wages and threats to expose their illegal status.
{{/usCountry}}The probe began when a woman reported her husband, Sheikh, lying unconscious at their Sangam Vihar residence. An autopsy confirmed strangulation as the cause of death, prompting police to register a case of murder. Investigators arrested two Bangladeshi couples — Midul Miyan alias Akash Ahmed and his wife, and Fardeen Ahmed alias Abhi Ahmed and his wife — who confessed to killing Sheikh over unpaid wages and threats to expose their illegal status.
{{/usCountry}}The couples disclosed they had entered India through forest routes and travelled to Delhi using fake Aadhaar cards provided by Sheikh. From Sheikh’s house, police recovered 21 Aadhaar cards, four voter IDs, eight PAN cards, and Bangladeshi identification documents, including chip-based National Identity Cards and birth certificates.
{{/usCountry}}The couples disclosed they had entered India through forest routes and travelled to Delhi using fake Aadhaar cards provided by Sheikh. From Sheikh’s house, police recovered 21 Aadhaar cards, four voter IDs, eight PAN cards, and Bangladeshi identification documents, including chip-based National Identity Cards and birth certificates.
{{/usCountry}}Investigators said they are probing if Sheikh is an illegal Bangladeshi immigrant and are trying to verify his antecedents and documents.
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“The syndicate has been operating since 2021 and it appears that Sheikh was the common link between the illegal Bangladeshi immigrants and the Delhi residents who were preparing forged IDs. We have reasons to believe that in the past four years, the syndicate may have helped nearly 100 Bangladeshis acquire Indian identities after illegally crossing over to India. Further probe may lead to more arrests,” DCP Chauhan said.
The syndicate facilitated illegal immigration through forested routes, with migrants transported on motorcycles to the nearest Indian towns. From there, they travelled to Delhi via express trains. Upon arrival, they received fake Aadhaar cards, temporary SIM cards, and cash for expenses.
The investigation revealed that the Aadhaar cards were forged at “Poonam Online Computer Centre” in Rohini’s Sector 5, operated by Sahil Sehgal, who was approached by Sheikh to create fake IDs. Sehgal used a fraudulent website, “Jantaprints.site,” to generate fake birth certificates, which were then sent to his associate Ranjit Kumar for Aadhaar processing.
Police arrested Kumar and traced the operation to Afroz, the authorised Aadhaar operator at a Rohini bank, who processed IDs using fake documents. The investigation extended to uncover payment channels, leading to the arrest of Mohammad Chand, who managed UPI transactions, and Saddam Hussain, who transferred funds to the website operator, Deepak Mishra.
Mishra, apprehended in Ambala, revealed his brother-in-law Sonu Kumar developed the fake website. Sonu, operating a cybercafé in Noida, admitted learning the trade through online tutorials.
The arrests come amid heightened scrutiny of illegal migrants in Delhi following Delhi lieutenant governor (LG) VK Saxena’s December 10 directive for a two-month drive to identify and deport undocumented Bangladeshis. The city police have since scrutinised hundreds of individuals in parks, streets, and informal settlements, according to officials aware of the crackdown. At least three migrants were arrested in the last fortnight, and nearly 800 individuals are under investigation for lacking citizenship documents.
The racket’s digital infrastructure, including the fake website “Jantaprints.site,” offered counterfeit documents such as birth certificates, caste certificates, and Covid vaccination records. Payments were made via QR codes, with proceeds routed through intermediaries.
“This syndicate exploited India’s documentation system to help illegal migrants settle, obtain jobs, and evade detection. The arrests are only the tip of the iceberg, and we expect to uncover more links as the investigation progresses,” DCP Chauhan said.
The arrested individuals face charges of forgery, identity fraud, and facilitating illegal immigration. Authorities are now working to trace other migrants linked to the network and tighten measures to prevent further exploitation of India’s ID systems.
