A team from the anti-terror squad of Madhya Pradesh Police arrested five Afghan nationals from Beniapukur and Bhowanipore on Friday for their alleged involvement in a passport scam.
Kolkata Police sources said that the accused men, who were staying in Calcutta, had obtained genuine Indian passports from Madhya Pradesh using fake and forged documents.
“The Madhya Pradesh Police were looking for the five in connection with a passport scam,” said an officer of the city police.
The five who were picked up with the assistance of the local police were produced before the court on Friday. The team was allowed to take the five to Madhya Pradesh on transit remand.
In 2024, a similar racket was unearthed in Calcutta, which was helping foreigners obtain Indian passports by supplying them with forged identity documents. The arrests had prompted the Kolkata Police to draw up a new standard operating procedure for passport verification.
Last year, Kolkata Police came across at least 120 cases where passport applicants had submitted forged identity documents. By the time police had stumbled upon this racket, 73 persons out of the 120 applicants had been issued Indian passports.