Kerala   

Impersonator held at Delhi airport

By Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar

NEW DELHI, FEB. 4. The Central Industrial Security Force officers today arrested an ayurvedic doctor from Ballia in Uttar Pradesh while he was trying to board a flight to Varanasi at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here on a boarding pass in the name of a Bahujan Samaj Party Member of Parliament, Babban Rajbhar.

According to the police, the accused, Harpal Singh, reached the airport around 9 a.m. to take the Delhi-Varanasi flight of Indian Airlines (IC 806) on a ticket issued in the name of Mr. Rajbhar who is the Member of Parliament from Salempur in U.P. Harpal Singh managed to procure the boarding pass from the ticketing counter but was unable to get past the prying eyes of alert CISF personnel.

As a senior CISF officer later put it, "Harpal Singh's gait and demeanour was not becoming of a Member of Parliament, so the CISF personnel on duty at the airport stopped and questioned him in the security hold area. Subsequently it was revealed that Harpal Singh was impersonating as Member of Parliament. Further investigations revealed that he was known to Mr. Rajbhar and had even stayed at his official residence in Delhi."

The Delhi police, with whom a case of cheating was subsequently registered by the CISF at the Palam police station, said the accused had come to Mr. Rajbhar in connection with some registration work and tried to use the M.P.'s travelling privileges to avail free travel to Varanasi.

The security agencies are viewing it as a serious case of impersonation as such misuse of privileges can open up new avenues for terrorists trying to enter a aircraft to carry out their nefarious designs.

Both the CISF and the Delhi police will also be reporting the matter to the higher authorities through the Union Home Ministry to curb such misuse of VIPs' travelling privileges.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Kerala

News: Front Page | National | Tamil Nadu | Andhra Pradesh | Karnataka | Kerala | New Delhi | Other States | International | Opinion | Business | Sport | Miscellaneous |
Advts: Classifieds | Employment | Obituary | Updates: Breaking News |

Stories in this Section

• House rejects motion for Speaker's removal
• Impersonator held at Delhi airport
• Postal strike called off
• Murali to be inducted into Cabinet
• Vote-on-account passed
• Discord in ruling front will be exploited: VS
• SHRC members told not to hold sittings
• Feasibility of self-financing law colleges being examined
• Jayalalithaa's word awaited
• Ready to sacrifice any post for party: Vakkom
• Petition against Ministers dismissed
• Efforts to broker peace in Congress
• Medical PG entrance test on March 27
• JPC criticises soft drink majors
• Marad Commission seeks extension
• KSRTC stir
• Briefly

Copyright © 2004, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu