LUCKNOW – The usual buzz filled the departure hall of Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport on Monday evening. Among the throng of outbound travelers was a man holding a perfectly forged identity: Rehan, son of Kabir, from Patna. But the 33-year-old wasn’t from Bihar. He was Jandullah Dad Mohammad, an Afghan national from the troubled province of Paktika. And it was his accent—not his documents—that ultimately exposed him.
Jandullah was preparing to board IndiGo flight 6E1423 to Sharjah, carrying an Indian passport and a full suite of identification: Aadhaar, PAN, Voter ID, driver’s license, ration card, and even a bank passbook—each in the name of Rehan from Patna. His appearance was unremarkable, his demeanor composed. He carried $1,600 in cash, 3,000 UAE Dirhams, ₹21,000 in Indian currency, a valid UAE visa, hotel bookings, and three mobile phones, including a brand-new iPhone 16 Pro.
Everything about his paperwork seemed in order—until an alert immigration officer noticed something unusual.
“Are you from Patna? Which part?” the officer asked in a routine check. The man responded, but his Hindi bore none of the regional lilt typical of Bihar’s Magadhi dialect. His accent was clearly foreign, and he struggled with basic questions about the city he claimed as home. “He just didn’t sound like he was from Patna,” the officer later said.
Sensing something amiss, the officer signaled for assistance. Jandullah was quietly taken aside for further questioning. A deeper search revealed his original Afghan passport and an expired Indian medical visa hidden in his luggage.
Authorities soon learned that he had entered India in December 2019 on a six-day visa for medical treatment and then disappeared. By 2020, he had managed to obtain a complete set of fake Indian documents, likely through a forgery ring operating out of Patna. The case has raised serious concerns within the immigration unit.
Paktika, his home province in southeastern Afghanistan, borders Pakistan’s restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan regions. It is known for its rugged terrain and proximity to terrorist strongholds—an origin that adds urgency to the investigation into his true motives and movements while in India.
An FIR was registered on Thursday afternoon at Sarojini Nagar police station based on a complaint filed by immigration officials. Jandullah faces charges under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for cheating, impersonation, forgery, and the use of forged documents. He is also charged under Section 12 of the Passport Act and Section 148 of the Foreigners Act.
Presented before a magistrate, Jandullah was remanded to judicial custody. His journey, which began in the shadows of a conflict zone and nearly led him out of India under a false identity, ended abruptly on the immigration floor—with a single question that didn’t quite sound right.
