According to the Press Trust of India (PTI), a man named Kiran Patel has been arrested by the Indian police for faking himself as a senior official from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s office. Patel was visiting the Kashmir valley on 2 March when security officials detained him. He was subsequently arrested on the following day.
The police pressed charges against Patel for the crimes of cheating, impersonation, and forgery. According to a complaint filed by the police, Patel’s motives were to obtain “monetary” and “material benefits” through his impersonation.
Patel’s arrest was made public on Thursday when he was produced in court. He was a verified Twitter user and has followers, including an official from the ruling Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP).
On his Twitter and Instagram accounts, Patel shared photos of himself which clearly shows his “official visits” to Kashmir, where he can be seen surrounded by paramilitary guards.
PTI reported that during one of his visits, Patel claimed that the government had tasked him with identifying buyers for apple orchards in south Kashmir. On another visit to the popular skiing destination Gulmarg, he claimed that he was asked by the government to investigate ways to improve hotel facilities in the area.
According to reports, Patel received the highest level of security during his visits. He traveled in a bulletproof car and stayed at official accommodation in a five-star hotel.
Court documents reveal security officials discovered forged identity cards in Patel’s possession.
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