PILIBHIT: A Sri Lankan woman who allegedly used forged identity documents to apply for an Indian passport after changing her name has been arrested along with her husband and another man in Pilibhit, Uttar Pradesh, police said on Thursday.
The woman, identified as Suraini Sri Vantika alias Zainab Begum, allegedly used forged residence and domicile certificates to obtain an Aadhaar card and subsequently apply for an Indian passport. Her husband, Mohammad Imran, and another man, Najeeb Khan, were also arrested.
Puranpur Kotwali station house officer Pawan Pandey said the case came to light during the verification of her passport application following a complaint from the Bareilly passport office. An FIR was registered on Thursday under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, and the Passport Act.
According to police, Imran met Suraini in 2018 while working at a garment company in Aqaba, Jordan. She came to India on a three-month tourist visa in March 2019 and married him. Their marriage was registered in court on June 3, 2019, after which her name was changed to Zainab Begum.
Police alleged that after her visa expired, the accused conspired to conceal her Sri Lankan nationality and arrange forged documents. She subsequently applied for an Indian passport on July 26, 2021, using the allegedly forged documents.
The three arrested accused were to be produced before a court, according to the police account.
(with inputs from media organisations)