B’deshi held, several Indian IDs found

Kolkata: A Bangladeshi national who had reportedly entered India with a valid passport a few months ago and managed to obtain multiple Indian identity documents, including Aadhaar and voter cards, has been arrested by Kolkata Police.

According to police, the accused, identified as Shanta Pal from Bangladesh, was a crew member of a Bangladeshi airline.

It is suspected that Pal came to India as part of the crew of Regent Airways and stayed back in Kolkata. She initially managed to find accommodation in the Park Street area. While staying there, she allegedly procured a ration card through a broker. Using the ration card, she later rented a room in the Bikramgarh area of Jadavpur.

After settling there, Pal reportedly reconnected with the broker and obtained both an Aadhaar card and a voter ID card.

Following that, she applied for an Indian passport. During a verification process, Pal was called in for questioning by the police. When asked for her birth certificate, she failed to produce one. She also could not give satisfactory answers when questioned about her family members.

Although initially allowed to go, police became suspicious of her responses. Subsequently, a case was registered at Park Street Police Station, and on Tuesday afternoon, Pal was arrested from her rented accommodation in Bikramgarh. A search of the premises led to the recovery of several Bangladeshi passports, an employee card from Regent Airways (Bangladesh), a Dhaka secondary education admit card, and Indian Aadhaar, voter ID, and ration cards—all bearing different addresses.