Exposed by Poor Hindi at Delhi Airport, Bangladeshi Citizen With Fake Indian Passport Arrested

In a surprising turn of events at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport, answering in Hindi proved to be costly for a traveller bound for Dhaka, Bangladesh. An Intelligence Bureau (IB) officer, reportedly enraged by the use of Hindi during questioning, filed a First Information Report (FIR), resulting in the arrest of two individuals so far.

The incident unfolded when Obaidir Rahman, intending to board Air India flight AI-237 to Dhaka, encountered scrutiny at the Bureau of Immigration counter at Delhi airport. Upon attempting to respond to queries in Hindi, Rahman was detained and subjected to extensive questioning by immigration officials. Subsequently, he was handed over to the airport police.

According to airport authorities, Rahman’s passport listed his name as Obeduddin, leading to further complications during the verification process. During the routine immigration procedure, Obeduddin, whose address was mentioned as Ridhora village in Uttar Pradesh’s Basti district, faced questioning from the officers.

Attempting to respond in Hindi, he inadvertently raised suspicions among officials. Sensing deception, officers initiated a thorough interrogation. Initially evasive, Obeduddin eventually confessed under further questioning, revealing crucial details implicating him in a theft case.

Obeduddin reportedly confessed to immigration officers that he is a Bangladeshi citizen from Berhamganj, Bangladesh. He admitted to illegally obtaining an Indian passport for travel abroad. Immigration officials further discovered a Bangladeshi passport and national ID card in his possession during the interrogation.

IGI Airport Police are now investigating how Obeduddin obtained the Indian passport, probing potential accomplices involved in facilitating the illegal acquisition.

This incident is not an isolated case of language-based profiling at the Delhi airport. Recently, Babuti Barua, a Bangladeshi citizen arriving from Moscow, was similarly apprehended. Barua was found in possession of an Indian passport issued under the name Arka Biswas, which he used for travel from Moscow to Delhi.