52 Bangladeshi infiltrators obtain birth certificates fraudulently in Maharashtra, booked

New Delhi, March 20: Senior BJP leader and former MP Kirit Somaiya on Thursday said there was a major Bangladeshi birth certificate scam going on in Maharashtra. He claimed that 52 infiltrators from the neighbouring country had fraudulently obtained birth certificates. Somaiya said six FIRs have been filed against these 52 in the state. The Bangladeshi nationals were living in various cities in the Akola district, Maharashtra, and had obtained birth certificates by submitting fake documents.

The FIRs have been filed in Akot, Telhara, Barshitakali, Ramdaspeth (Akola city), Murtijapur, and Patur police stations under sections 3(5), 229, 236, 237, 318(4), 336(3), 340(2) of the Bhartiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS). The BJP leader said, "It was a case of Bangladeshi birth certificate scam. Six FIRs have been filed against 52 infiltrators from Bangladesh." He gave a list of the infiltrators who had obtained the birth certificates fraudulently. The list of 52 has around 12 women who have also secured birth certificates.

Earlier, this month Somaiya exposed a massive illegal birth certificate racket that has allowed thousands of Bangladeshis and Rohingyas to obtain Indian citizenship fraudulently. The scam, he claimed originated in Amravati with 4,500 fake registrations. He said that it is a statewide crisis, with over 1.3 lakh fraudulent birth certificates issued. Somaiya has demanded immediate cancellation of these certificates, arrests of corrupt officials, and an overhaul of the birth registration system. He has also submitted 478 pages of evidence to the police,

The BJP leader stated, “We are witnessing the most dangerous infiltration scam in Maharashtra’s history." On Tuesday, Minister of State for Home Yogesh Kadam informed the Maharashtra Assembly that the government has asked developers and contractors in Mumbai to give an undertaking that they do not employ Bangladeshis in their projects. If any Bangladeshi is noticed in the project, it is their responsibility to inform the police, he said.

In January, the Maharashtra government set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the issuance of birth and death certificates on “delayed” applications amid complaints of illegal immigrants from Bangladesh living in parts of the state.