Siliguri: The Central Bureau of Investigation has busted a fake passport racket, which was operational in West Bengal and neighbouring Sikkim and arrested a senior superintendent of Passport Seva Laghu Kendras (PSLK), along with a middleman from a hotel here.
The CBI seized around Rs 2 lakh and other incriminating documents from the hotel, official sources said on Saturday.
The CBI searched some 50 places, including Gangtok, the capital town of Sikkim, and parts of north Bengal’s Siliguri, Alipurduar Kolkata and Uluberia in the Howrah district today, the sources said.
The CBI has registered a case against 24 persons, including 16 government officials for allegedly issuing passports on the basis of forged documents. they confirmed.
During the search operations, the federal agency arrested Gautam Kumar Saha, Senior Superintendent at the Passport Seva Kendra in Gangtok and one hotel agent with cash of Rs 1,90,000 for allegedly issuing passports on forged and fake documents for middlemen.
