In Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh, police have busted multiple fraudsters who were found tampering Aadhaar cards to falsely prove people eligible for age-based welfare schemes being implemented by the state government. According to the police, the accused were involved in creating fake PAN cards with a false date of birth and then tampering with Aadhar cards to reflect a false age of the beneficiary. Krishna district Superintendent of Police M Ravindranath Babu told the media that the police had recovered scores of cards from Gudivada and Tiruvuru towns.
The SP mentioned three schemes for which tampered Aadhaar cards were being created — YSR Pension Kanuka, Cheyutha (financial assistance for women of SC, ST, BC and minority communities in the age group of 45-60 years), and Kapu Nestham (for poor women from Kapu, Balija, Telaga and Ontari communities aged between 45 and 60). Under the pension scheme, beneficiaries receive a monthly amount of Rs 2,250. Cheyutha and Kapu Nestham provide annual financial assistance of Rs 18,750 and Rs 15,000 respectively.
SP Ravindranath Babu said that two cases have been registered in Gudivada and Tiruvuru towns against six persons. In Gudivada, the scam was found being run from Sarath Communication Centre, by a man named Rupa Satya Kumar. “Upto 150 fake PAN cards, Aadhaar cards and Driving Licenses were seized from his net centre,” the SP said, adding that an Aadhaar resource person from a nearby bank branch was also arrested. In Tiruvuru, four persons have been arrested, including the manager of a MeeSeva centre and a BSNL office Aadhaar resource person.
“With the help of these people, in order to avail benefits from government schemes with age limits, people were tampering the date of birth in the original Aadhaar and changing it to suit the government scheme,” the SP said.
He said that the fake PAN cards were generated through an app called Roxy India, and the fake PAN card is then used to apply for a fake Aadhaar. As per municipality and revenue records, around 20 people so far have applied and gained benefits through tampered cards, the SP said.
“We will investigate how many more people gained benefits through fake cards. The beneficiaries’ Aadhaar cards will be seized and cancelled, along with the benefits under the schemes,” the SP said.
In a similar bust that happened in Kurnool district in October, nearly 30 persons were taken into police custody for similarly using the data changing provisions in UIDAI and allegedly registering people under government welfare schemes.