Police in Dehradun have launched a major investigation into government-approved Common Service Centres (CSCs), also known as Jan Seva Kendras, following the arrest of 19 Bangladeshi nationals over the past year. The foreigners were allegedly living illegally in the city using forged Indian identity documents.
CSCs Shut Down After Surprise Inspection Reveals Irregularities
This decisive move comes after the district administration took action, shutting down at least two CSCs in the city. One of these centres was operating on the tehsil premises itself. The closures followed a surprise inspection conducted on Sunday evening, which uncovered multiple irregularities in their operations.
A senior police officer, speaking to TOI on condition of anonymity, confirmed the troubling link. "During investigations into the cases involving foreign nationals, the role of certain CSCs surfaced in issuing Indian IDs based on forged documents," the officer revealed. He further added that the police have since identified specific centres suspected of providing fake documents to foreigners staying illegally in Dehradun.
Fake IDs Include Aadhaar, PAN, and Voter Cards
Dehradun Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Ajai Singh provided alarming details about the scale of the fraud. He stated that several of the detained foreigners were found in possession of genuine-looking Indian documents like Aadhaar cards, PAN cards, and voter ID cards.
SSP Singh highlighted a particularly concerning case from last week. "In a recent arrest of a Bangladeshi woman, we found she had obtained Indian IDs under a false Hindu name and had even married a local man," he said. Singh emphasized that such developments are deeply worrying from a national security perspective and assured that strict legal action will be taken against anyone involved in facilitating these crimes.
Coordinated Scrutiny Intensifies
In response to these findings, the police, in close coordination with the district administration, have significantly intensified their scrutiny of CSC operations across Dehradun. The focus is to dismantle any networks that might be exploiting these public service centres to compromise national identity systems and aid illegal immigration.
The case underscores a critical vulnerability in the process of issuing crucial identity documents and has prompted a city-wide review of the protocols followed by authorised service centres.
