In a significant case of immigration fraud, a 30-year-old man from Gujarat was apprehended at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) for allegedly using a counterfeit passport to re-enter India after an illegal stay in the United States.
The Airport Arrest and Document Scrutiny
Jigar Patel, a resident of Gayatri Society in Mehsana, Gujarat, found himself in legal trouble upon his arrival at Terminal 3 of IGIA. The incident came to light on December 19, when vigilant immigration officials detected serious inconsistencies in his travel papers. Patel had arrived around 12:30 pm on flight AI 126 from the US, officially listed as a deportee.
A formal complaint was swiftly filed with the IGI Airport police. Investigation into Patel's travel history revealed a clear pattern of deception. Records showed he initially left India in April 2013 using a genuine Indian passport, which eventually expired in June 2022. However, for his return journey, he presented a completely different passport issued in New York in 2019 under the name of Khurshed Ansari, a resident of Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh. Official databases had flagged this passport as 'lost'.
Forensic Flaws in the Forged Document
A detailed forensic examination by immigration experts exposed multiple security failures in the passport Patel used. The document blatantly failed to meet Indian security standards. Key discrepancies included:
- Manual laser perforation instead of machine-done precision.
- A defective ghost image on the biographical data page.
- Complete absence of UV security fibres on the pages.
- No visible national emblem watermark.
Based on these glaring flaws, officials conclusively determined the passport was a fake.
Investigation Unravels a Conspiracy
During interrogation, Jigar Patel reportedly confessed to obtaining the forged passport through an agent known only as Rocky, who operates from Ahmedabad. This act constituted a deliberate attempt to cheat Indian immigration authorities and involved the forgery of a critical official document.
The police have registered a case under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita pertaining to cheating, forgery, using a forged document as genuine, and criminal conspiracy. Provisions of the Passport Act have also been invoked. As part of the evidence collection, authorities have seized the fake passport, relevant passenger logs, and CCTV footage. The IGI Airport police are leading the further investigation.
A New Trend in Immigration Fraud
This case sheds light on an emerging dimension of immigration fraud, directly linked to stricter enforcement against undocumented immigrants in countries like the United States. A source familiar with the matter indicated that as US authorities ramp up actions, several undocumented Indians, particularly from states like Gujarat, are choosing self-deportation.
"Entry into the US is difficult, but now even exit is not easy. Some are taking illegal shortcuts, including duplicate or borrowed passports, to return," the source revealed. Police officials state that this case is a stark example of fraud driven by the fear of legal consequences abroad, prompting individuals to commit fresh crimes to facilitate their return.
