Investigation Launched into Voting Fraud Involving Pakistani National in West Bengal

Enforcement Directorate Probes Voting Irregularities

Kolkata, June 11: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has initiated an investigation into the origins of the documents that allowed Azad Mullick, a Pakistani national arrested in Kolkata in April, to obtain an EPIC card. This card enabled him to vote in both the 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections and the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Sources familiar with the case revealed that the ED is particularly puzzled by how Azad's EPIC card went unnoticed during the review of the voters’ list conducted between 2021 and 2024.

The agency is collaborating with the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal to gather information regarding the documents Azad submitted to acquire his EPIC card.

As per the ED's findings, Azad was registered as a voter in the Dum Dum-Uttar Assembly constituency located in North 24 Parganas district, which is part of the Dum Dum Lok Sabha constituency. He confirmed this during questioning about his voting activities in 2021 and 2024.

The presence of foreign nationals on the voter rolls in West Bengal has become a contentious issue, especially with the Assembly elections approaching next year.

On Tuesday, the ECI directed the CEO's office in West Bengal to investigate a case involving an individual who participated in a student movement in Bangladesh last year and is listed as a voter in the Kakdwip Assembly constituency in South 24 Parganas district.

This controversy arose after whistleblowers shared images of Newton Das, a registered voter in Kakdwip, who was involved in the student movement in Bangladesh on social media. Claims have been made that Das holds dual citizenship in India and Bangladesh.

Suvendu Adhikari, the Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, accused the Trinamool Congress regime of facilitating the inclusion of Bangladeshi nationals in the state's voter list, adding to the ongoing corruption allegations.

The situation surrounding Azad, who initially claimed to be a Bangladeshi citizen, became more complex upon his arrest in early April. Documents seized by the ED indicated that he had obtained Indian identity documents, including a passport, through fraudulent means.

However, on April 29, the ED's counsel informed a special court in Kolkata that Azad confessed to being a Pakistani national. He stated that he had first acquired Bangladeshi citizenship using forged documents and subsequently obtained Indian identity papers in a similar manner.