Central teams inspect Bhopal passport office

Bhopal, Jan 28: A joint team of Central Vigilance Commission and Ministry of External Affairs on Monday reportedly raided the Regional Passport Office. Though, officials claimed it as a routine inspection carried out annually in each state, sources claimed a few complaints led to the proceedings. The inspection is likely to continue on Tuesday also.

The team reportedly comprising officers from the Central Vigilance Commission and Union Ministry of External Affairs raided the premises at Rang Mahal Tower. The team inspected counters in the beginning and then scrutinized the documents and applications received for preparing passports. Remarkably, a similar operation was carried out on February 28, 2007 when a team from External Affairs Ministry inspected the office. As many as two middlemen were nabbed during the daylong exercise last year.

However, the officials including the Regional Passport Officer RA Dhone held it as routine checking and affirmed the teams visit every passport office once in a year. It should be noted here that the Bhopal Regional Passport Office has gained notoriety in the past by issuing passports to the Underworld Don Abu Salem, his wife and film star Monica Bedi. High placed sources informed that the team would stay in the state capital for one more day to complete the formalities.