India, May 1 -- Fugitive drug lord Salim Dola, who was deported from Turkiye under on Tuesday, had acquired a Bulgarian passport to escape from the country under the fake name of Hamza, officials aware of the matter said. The Indian agencies have taken photocopies of his Bulgarian passport.

A person aware of the matter, on the condition of anonymity, said, "He was trapped in Turkiye because he had come to the country in 2024 on Indian passport. He could not travel as an Indian citizen using his real name because a Red Corner notice was issued against him two years ago."

Dola, who is currently being questioned in Mumbai by the Narcotics Control Bureau(NCB) officials, told his interrogators that after escaping India in 2018 while he was o...