Kiran Bhai Patel till a few days ago was considered a PMO official and was enjoying VIP treatment with Z-plus security cover in Jammu and Kashmir but now he is in jail.
The super conman fooled the higher most rank government officials that too related to sensitive security. He fraudulently posed himself as an official from Prime Minister's Office and held several meetings with Jammu and Kashmir officials and also reportedly visited the LoC (line of control, International Border) area.
Who is Kiran Bhai Patel?
Patel hails from Gujarat. According to his Twitter bio, he did PHD from Commonwealth University, Virginia, USA. He did his MBA from IIM TRICHY. He has also a degree of M Tech (Computer Science) and BE Computer (L D Engineering). He called himself as 'thinker, strategist, analyst and campaign manager. What amused people most was that he has a verified Twitter account.
Apple trade link
Patel had claimed he had been given a mandate by the government to identify buyers for apple orchards in south Kashmir and a couple of IAS officers were in awe of him as he had been dropping names of high-ranking bureaucrats and politicians in the national capital.
Conman arrested
He was arrested by J&K police from a five-star hotel in Srinagar for posing as an 'additional secretary' in the Centre and enjoying security cover besides other hospitality.
According to court documents, Patel was on his third visit to the Kashmir valley and was subsequently nabbed by alert security officials on March 3. The news about the conman surfaced when he was produced before the magistrate.
He was produced before a court here last evening for an extension of his police remand. A case under relevant sections of cheating and forgery was registered against him on March 2 and he was arrested the next day.
During his earlier visit, he had travelled to tourist hotspot Gulmarg claiming that the government had tasked him to look for improvement of hotel facilities in the area.
How he was caught
Security agencies got suspicious after he landed at the airport on March 2 as there was no information of any VIP movement. An attempt was made to stop him at the airport but this could not fructify as he had already stepped into a bullet-proof car on the way to the hotel.
After his questioning and subsequent arrest, security officials recovered forged identity cards from his possession, the documents said.
(With PTI input)
Also read- Chahatt Khanna records statement in conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar case
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