Kolkata, 7 May (H.S.): In a startling revelation, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has uncovered that Azad Malik, a Pakistani national arrested in a fake passport racket case in West Bengal, had illegally voted in both the 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections and the ongoing 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

According to ED sources, Malik was a registered voter in the Dumdum North Assembly constituency under North 24 Parganas district, which falls within the Dumdum Lok Sabha seat. During interrogation, Malik admitted to casting his vote in both elections, raising serious concerns over the integrity of electoral processes and national security.

Malik was arrested in early April from Kolkata. At the time of his arrest, documents seized by the ED indicated that he had initially been residing in India as a Bangladeshi national. Using forged documents, he had obtained an Indian passport and multiple other identity papers.

Investigations have further revealed that Malik is the proprietor of Malik Trading Corporation and was allegedly running a hawala operation from his Kolkata residence. He was also linked to a network involved in providing fake Indian passports to Bangladeshi infiltrators, authorities said.

On April 29, ED counsel informed a special court in Kolkata that Malik is originally from Pakistan. He allegedly first acquired Bangladeshi citizenship through fraudulent means, and later obtained fake Indian documents to assume a new identity.

Malik’s real name, according to Pakistani records, is Azad Hussain. In Bangladeshi documents, he changed his name to Ahmed Hussain Azad, and in Indian records, he went by the name Azad Malik.

At the time of his arrest, authorities seized two fake voter ID cards, multiple driving licenses, four forged birth certificates, and a bank account with ₹2.62 crore in deposits. The ED is now probing whether these funds were linked to anti-national activities within India.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh