A 27-year-old man, operating a cyber center at Heelalige, Bengaluru, has been arrested for allegedly helping illegal Bangladeshi migrants obtain official identification like Aadhaar and PAN cards using forged documents. The accused, identified as Arnab Mandal, was reportedly charging between Rs6,000 to Rs8,000 for each Aadhaar card processed through his illegal operation.
The arrest followed a raid on November 22, led by Deputy Superintendent of Police BK Mohan Kumar, based on a tip-off about the fraudulent activities. The raid took place at Mandal’s shop, Wow Technology UK, located in Heelalige. Police recovered significant evidence during the operation, including 18 rental agreements, along with several Aadhaar cards, PAN cards, and ration cards.
The investigation revealed that Mandal had been forging the signatures of landowners in the rental agreements and using these documents to create fake Aadhaar cards for migrants. Those listed as property owners denied any involvement, confirming that they never entered into such agreements. Authorities also found documents indicating that Mandal was preparing additional ration cards, which were yet to be distributed.
In total, police seized 55 Aadhaar cards, about 40 bank passbooks, computers, a laptop, and mobile phones during the raid. Mandal, originally from the South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal, had been residing in Heelalige for the past three years, according to the police.
Investigations are ongoing to identify the illegal Bangladeshis who benefited from Mandal’s services. Authorities are also examining whether Pakistani nationals might have exploited this racket by posing as Bangladeshi migrants to obtain fraudulent identification.