Chandigarh, Oct. 4 -- In a major breakthrough against the circulation of fake currency, Chandigarh Police busted an inter-state syndicate operating across five states and recovered counterfeit currency with a face value of Rs.24.27 lakh. According to police, 7,157 fake notes in denominations of Rs.500 and Rs.100 were seized, along with two vehicles, printers, inks, cutters, and security-thread embedded papers used in printing counterfeit notes. Three men - Gaurav Kumar alias Ranjit, 34, of Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, Vikram Meena alias Vicky, 35, of Sangrur, Punjab, and Jitendra Sharma, 42, of Rajasthan - have been arrested in the operation led by the crime branch. On September 25, a central agency had tipped-off Chandigarh Police about the circulation of fake notes of Rs.500. Following this, a trap was laid near Shishu Niketan School in Sector-22. On the informer's identification, Gaurav Kumar and Vikram Meena were nabbed. Gaurav was found carrying a bag with 19 counterfeit notes of Rs.500. A search of his Tata Harrier car led to the recovery of 1,626 fake notes with a face value of Rs.8.23 lakh. Vikram's Alto car had 392 notes of Rs.500 denomination, valued at Rs.1.96 lakh. An FIR under Sections 178 (counterfeiting coin and government notes), 179 (act of using, selling, or possessing as genuine any forged or counterfeit coin), and 180 (possession of counterfeit coin) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita was registered at the Sector 11 police station. Based on disclosures by the accused, raids were carried out in Sangrur and Mandi, leading to the recovery of more fake notes. The probe revealed that the syndicate relied heavily on courier services to send and receive consignments of counterfeit currency.On October 1, the crime branch tracked down Jitendra Sharma in Jhalrapatan, Rajasthan. From his rented residence, police recovered fake currency with a face value of Rs.12.20 lakh, along with printers, bond paper with embedded "RBI Bharat" security threads, inks, and cutters. Investigations revealed that the gang initially met buyers physically, but later expanded through social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Telegram. Potential customers were lured with videos and pictures of counterfeit notes. Small consignments were first delivered to gain trust, followed by larger parcels.The racket worked on a 1:3 ratio- Fake notes with a face value of Rs.3 lakh were exchanged for Rs.1 lakh in genuine currency. The notes were either delivered via courier or mixed with genuine bundles to escape detection.As per the police, along with Chandigarh-based persons, some from other states are also involved in the racket. Of these, cops have arrested Pramod Katre from Maharashtra and Mohammad Shafie Ganaie from Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). Two minors in J&K were also held for their role....