CBI asked to probe illegal immigration racket involving army

New Delhi: Turning down the army’s request for an internal inquiry into the alleged illegal immigration racket involving some of its top brass, the defence ministry has asked the CBI to conduct a thorough probe into the scam.The CBI, in response to a letter from the defence secretary, Mr Vijay Singh, has asked him to file a complaint before it so that an FIR could be lodged in the case, official sources said. It has also sought all records pertaining to the case.
The racket came to light earlier this month when four persons were detained at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here while trying to leave the country on official army passports, prompting the authorities to investigate for possible links with a larger illegal immigration network.
The four detained persons were carrying official white passports issued to the Army Headquarters band for a performance in Germany. According to sources, an Army soldier Mr Suresh Babu had allegedly prepared these travel documents and sold them for nearly Rs 50,000 each. During investigations, Mr Babu had claimed that he had prepared the passports in the past as well, the sources said. The sources said that Mr Babu had alleged that he had prepared diplomatic passports illegally for senior official and his wife during their visit to Malaysia. He has also named a Colonel working in the Ceremonial and welfare directorate at the army headquarters.
29/11/07 PTI/Navhind Times

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Categories: Airports Nov 2007