The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has busted a fake currency racket in Delhi and seized fake currency notes of Rs 2,000, with face value of Rs 4.22 lakh.
According to an official statement issued here, the notes were smuggled in from Bangladesh. The fake currencies were seized from a person when he was boarding a train to West Bengal's Malda from Old Delhi railway station on Monday. The person has been identified as Ram Prasad.
The statement added that 211 pieces of fake India currency notes (FICN) of Rs 2,000 denomination were recovered from Prasad.
"During interrogation, the accused has stated that he is a member of an international racket and working as a carrier for another handler," the statement said.
Prasad identified his handler as Mataur Rehman who is sitting in Patna. Prasad said that he has carried these fake currency notes for delivery at places in Delhi and Haryana.
"The DRI has further mounted surveillance and intercepted the handler from Patna railway station today," the statement said. Both accused have been arrested at their respective locations and sent to judicial custody.
Preliminary investigation revealed that the syndicate in Malda has been procuring these counterfeit notes from persons operating from Mohammadpur village in Bangladesh and supplying it in Delhi and adjoining areas on regular basis since introduction of new notes after demonetisation, the DRI statement said.
As per expert opinion, these forged notes do not match with original ones on many counts.
"The notes lack many security features but have enough similarities with original notes for bringing into circulation by befooling common public," it said.
Since introduction of new currency notes post-demonetisation, the DRI has till date seized counterfeit notes in many cases at Mumbai, Delhi, Patna, Guwahati and Behrampur and recovered fake Indian currency notes having face value of Rs 50 lakh approximately. In all cases, it is seen that smuggling routes of FICN emanates out of Bangladesh, the DRI said.
