Immigration quiz at IGI Airport exposes Afghan with fake Indian passport

(DELHI) An Afghan national was detained at Indira Gandhi International Airport on August 21, 2025, after failing a brief immigration quiz about Maharashtra that exposed his use of a fake Indian passport claiming birth in Mumbai. Officials identified the traveler as Mohammad Rasool Najeeb Khan, who was booked to fly to Kabul on Kam Air flight RQ-4402.

His passport listed Mumbai as his birthplace and Navi Mumbai as his address, but officers said his unfamiliarity with Marathi and basic facts about the state raised immediate red flags. According to analysis by VisaVerge.com, targeted questions tied to claimed place of origin are now a common tool at airports when details on identity documents appear inconsistent.

Initial Screening and Arrest

Immigration officers at the busy Delhi hub said the passenger struggled with simple questions about local language and geography, prompting a secondary check. When officers verified the address and cross-checked internal databases, they found mismatches that could not be explained.

The man was then handed to the IGI Airport Police, who opened a detailed probe into how the document was issued and whether a wider criminal network helped him secure it. Authorities have linked the case to a broader, Afghan-led document fraud racket with operations across several Indian states.

Investigators in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra say the network recruited Afghan nationals living illegally in India, steered them to specific districts to file paperwork, and coached them on cover stories. The crackdown intensified in July and August after multiple arrests and fresh leads tied to Maharashtra.

Police said criminal charges are being pursued under provisions of the Indian Penal Code related to identity fraud and forgery, along with violations of the Passport Act. Officers added that charges may expand as digital trails are reviewed.

The Delhi case is being coordinated with the Madhya Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) and Maharashtra Police, with further checks underway in West Bengal and Chhattisgarh.

Racket Links to Akola Emerge

On August 4, 2025, the Madhya Pradesh ATS arrested alleged kingpin Sohbat Khan, describing Akola district in Maharashtra as a key meeting point for the network. Investigators said Akola served as a covert hub where facilitators gathered applicants, sourced counterfeit Aadhaar and PAN cards, and prepared supporting documents.

According to ATS briefings, the racket had already secured Indian passports for at least three Afghan nationals, with 15–17 more applications under review.

Key allegations and findings:
– Applicants typically paid up to ₹1.2 lakh for a doctored passport package.
– The network bribed postal workers about ₹3,000 to intercept booklets before delivery to fake addresses, preventing return-to-sender checks.
– Facilitators used shared community spaces to set up meetings and pass on forged IDs, enabling quick handoffs that avoided extended digital footprints.

The latest detention at Indira Gandhi International Airport follows that pattern: a false Mumbai address and a personal history that did not hold up under basic language and culture checks. The use of local knowledge questions—such as identifying common Marathi words, nearby train stations, or district landmarks—has become an efficient filter when an applicant claims deep ties to a specific Indian city. Investigators maintain that this approach, coupled with database cross-referencing, helped uncover the passport’s true origin.

Policy Response and Security Measures

At the policy level, New Delhi is moving ahead with the Immigration and Foreigners Bill, 2025, introduced in March, which aims to replace colonial-era statutes with a single legal framework. Core proposals would:

• Place the burden of proving lawful status on the individual.
• Require registration of all foreigners on arrival.
• Allow denial of entry or stay for security risks.
• Require certain institutions to report foreign nationals to authorities.

Officials say the bill seeks to streamline procedures while raising penalties for document fraud.

Operational steps already directed by the Home Ministry include:
– More rigorous document verification at airports and passport offices.
– Use of quick language and regional knowledge assessments when identity claims appear suspicious.
– Escalation of mismatched cases to dedicated units for deeper review.
– Ongoing biometric upgrades and rollout of digital authentication tools to verify identity documents at key points of service.

Travelers and residents—citizens and foreigners alike—should expect more questions at counters if any detail on their paperwork looks unusual. Practical guidance:
– Indian citizens: ensure addresses, phone numbers, and proof documents match; carry extra ID when possible.
– Foreign nationals: keep visas, registration records, and travel histories handy in case officers request additional proof.

The Bureau of Immigration offers official guidance and contact details at https://boi.gov.in.

Advocacy groups have raised civil liberties concerns, warning that broad rules could lead to extra scrutiny for lawful migrants and minorities. Security officials counter that the racket’s reach, and the national security risk of foreign nationals obtaining Indian documents, require sustained checks and stronger penalties.

Law enforcement sources say they are refining protocols to focus on high-risk patterns—such as sudden identity claims tied to specific districts, repeated use of the same addresses, or unusual postal handling—rather than sweeping measures that affect ordinary travelers.

The human stakes are clear: legal foreign students and workers in India may face longer interviews or secondary inspections if something seems off in their files. Most travelers, officials note, clear secondary inspection without further action once records align.

What Happens Next

In the Delhi case, police said the detained traveler is Mohammad Rasool Najeeb Khan, and that investigators are tracing the full chain—from document forgery to postal interception—to identify all accomplices.

The timeline and standard sequence used at airports when potential document fraud arises:
1. Detection: officers flagged the traveler after spotting language and regional knowledge gaps tied to the claimed birthplace.
2. Questioning: he failed basic questions about Maharashtra, which deepened suspicion.
3. Verification: databases showed discrepancies in address and identity details.
4. Detention: he was handed to the IGI Airport Police for formal action.
5. Investigation: agencies began mapping the network, including links to Akola and other states.

Quantitative updates from police:
– At least six individuals arrested so far in connection with the Afghan-led racket, including the alleged kingpin.
– Three Afghans confirmed to have obtained Indian passports through fraud.
– 15–17 applications remain under scrutiny.

Investigators believe the Delhi detention may produce fresh leads, especially on document suppliers and postal contacts. Looking ahead:
– The Immigration and Foreigners Bill, 2025 is expected to move toward enactment in the coming months, with phased rollout of new rules.
– Airports and passport offices will continue scaling up digital checks.
– Police units in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, and Chhattisgarh are likely to intensify joint operations.

For travelers, that means more questions for a small subset of cases, but also quicker clearances where digital systems verify identities on the spot.

As for the Delhi airport stop, officers credit sharper frontline screening for exposing a fake Indian passport before the passenger could board. If the pattern seen in Akola holds, further arrests may follow as seized phones, application trails, and postal data point investigators to the next link in the chain.