How Chhota Rajan used forged documents to secure a passport from Chennai in 1996
Long before biometric verification and digital databases transformed passport issuance, Mumbai underworld don Rajendra Sadashiv Nikalje alias Chhota Rajan obtained a genuine Indian passport from
Long before biometric verification and digital databases transformed passport issuance, Mumbai underworld don Rajendra Sadashiv Nikalje alias Chhota Rajan obtained a genuine Indian passport from the Regional Passport Office (RPO) in Chennai in 1996 by creating a false identity backed by forged documents, fictitious references, and a fake residential address. A judgment delivered by the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Egmore, reconstructs how the gangster, then one of India’s most wanted fugitives, assumed the identity of ‘Vijay Kadam’, convinced passport authorities that he was a Chennai resident, and ultimately travelled to Bangkok using the fraudulently obtained passport. The court recently convicted him of cheating, impersonation, forgery, using forged documents as genuine, and violating the Passport Act. How the passport was obtained According to the prosecution, Chhota Rajan assumed the identity of Vijay Kadam, son of Ramakrishna Kadam. The passport application described him as a resident of No. 10, Kumaran Street, Ambattur, Chennai, even though his actual address was Tilak Nagar Colony, Chembur, Mumbai. On February 16, 1996, the Regional Passport Office in Chennai received the passport application by registered post. It was accompanied by a ₹300 demand draft, a copy of a ration card, and a Transfer Certificate purportedly issued by Don Bosco Higher Secondary School, Perambur.
These documents were submitted as proof of the applicant’s age and residence. The application was processed in the normal course after being received by post. Since it was not submitted in person, there was no opportunity for passport officials to physically verify the applicant’s identity at the time. However, the application initially hit a hurdle. As the mandatory police verification report had not been received, the passport file was placed before the then Public Relations Officer, M. Sivaraj, who directed officials to obtain the original Transfer Certificate and ration card before taking a decision. The RPO accordingly wrote to the applicant seeking the original documents. Instead of producing the originals, ’Vijay Kadam’ wrote to the passport office on May 6, 1996, claiming that he had to travel to Singapore on business and requesting that the passport be issued without delay. Along with the letter, he enclosed notarised copies of the Transfer Certificate and ration card. The file was again placed before the Public Relations Officer, who recorded that attested copies had been produced and approved the issuance of the passport. On May 16, 1996, the Regional Passport Office issued Passport No. A0930085 in the name of Vijay Kadam.
The BriefWire