New Delhi/Chennai, July 30 -- A Special CBI Court on Thursday convicted underworld don Chota Rajan, alias Vijaya Kadam, in a passport fraud case and sentenced him to seven years' rigorous imprisonment along with a fine of Rs 55,000 for offences including cheating, forgery, personation and using forged documents to obtain an Indian passport.
Rajan, whose real name is Rajendra alias Nana, is currently lodged in Tihar Jail, where he is serving a life sentence.
The case dates back to March 19, 2002, when the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registered an FIR following a complaint alleging that Rajan had secured an Indian passport from the Regional Passport Office in Chennai by submitting forged documents.
During the investigation, the agency found that Rajan had applied for the passport in the name of Vijaya Kadam using fabricated documents, including a school transfer certificate, ration card, demand draft and other records, to establish his identity, age and residence.
The CBI said the accused impersonated Vijaya Kadam and fraudulently obtained the passport by presenting forged documents as genuine. Investigators established that the applicant was, in fact, Rajendra alias Nana alias Chota Rajan, son of Sadashiv and a resident of Mumbai. Following the investigation, the CBI filed a chargesheet before the Special Court on January 22, 2004, charging Rajan with cheating, forgery, personation and knowingly using forged documents to obtain the passport.
The Special CBI Court found him guilty and awarded a seven-year jail term and imposed a fine of Rs 55,000. The sentence will be in addition to the life imprisonment Rajan is already serving in Tihar Jail.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.