Two Bangladeshi nationals, who illegally entered India and then travelled to Mumbai, managed to obtain Indian passports using bogus documents procured from Pusad town near here, police said.
The documents produced for obtaining the passports by Mohammad Azim Gazi Majed Gazi (27) and Habil Rubel Sheikh (25) were found to be fake during verification, Pusad Police said.
Police are now looking for a Mumbai-based lawyer and a middleman, who they suspect, helped Gazi and Sheikh in getting these documents from Government offices in Pusad.
The duo managed to get documents like ration cards, domicile certificates and voter i-cards from local municipal and revenue offices, said Sub-Inspector Rajendra Naik, who is Investigating Officer in the case.
Gazi and Sheikh used these fraudulently procured papers to get their passports, he said.
The two were lodged in Mumbai Central Jail, serving a six-month sentence after being found guilty by a Thane Court of illegally entering India.
Police got their custody on October 20 and brought them to Pusad, where they were produced before a Court which remanded them in police custody till October 26.
The case came to light when the two produced the bogus documents and also their passports while seeking bail in the illegal entry case.
“The fake documents could not have been obtained by the two without the help of some influential local persons,” Naik said.
The officer said they have sought help from the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa to identity and track down the lawyer, who helped them.
