A major forgery racket was exposed in Surat after a 26-year-old MBA student, Deepak Patnaik, was arrested for using fake signatures and official stamps of BJP MLA Kumar Kanani from Varachha constituency. The scam had been running for three and a half months before the Kapodara police cracked down on the operation. Authorities are now searching for the mastermind behind the forged documents.
Patnaik’s fraud was uncovered after police discovered that he had been forging MLA signatures and seals to alter Aadhaar and PAN card records, uploading falsified data onto government portals. Acting on a tip-off, the police raided a location near Saurashtra Circle and arrested Patnaik.
Patnaik not only forged MLA signatures and stamps, but he also used these forged documents to manipulate official records and charged customers for the fraudulent modifications. He passed off the counterfeit seals as legitimate, embedding them into government forms before uploading them online.
During the raid, authorities seized a collection of forged materials, including signature seals of MLA Kumar Kanani, Aadhaar cards, a printer, a computer, filled Aadhaar application forms, and blank forms, all linked to Patnaik’s illegal operation.
Further investigation revealed that Patnaik had obtained the fake stamps in the name of MLA Kumar Kanani from an unidentified source in Sambalpur, Odisha. He set up a rented office near the Shanidev temple in Surat’s Kapodara area, where he ran his forgery business.
For the duration of the scam, Patnaik manipulated Aadhaar and PAN card records, charging Rs 200 per form. When customers lacked valid proof of residence, he bypassed the verification process by uploading the falsified forms directly onto government portals using his office computer.
Surat DCP Alok Kumar reported that the police were able to crack the operation within five hours. Patnaik, an MBA student at Indira Gandhi University, was found with over 20 filled forms featuring fake signatures and stamps, as well as 25 blank forms. The discovery of an Aadhaar photocopy of MLA Kumar Kanani during the raid intensified the investigation.
In response to the scam, MLA Kumar Kanani expressed concern over the severity of counterfeiting government officials’ documents, warning that fake signature stamps could have dangerous consequences. He also commended the swift police action in bringing the perpetrator to justice.
The investigation is ongoing, with authorities continuing to search for the individuals involved in this fraudulent operation.
