The Maharashtra government will cancel all fake birth certificates issued to Bangladeshi nationals living illegally in the state by August 15, Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule announced on Wednesday.
Bawankule said that around 42,000 such fraudulent cases have been identified so far, but the actual number is believed to be higher.
“As many as 42,000 such cases have been found but the actual number is greater, and it will be ascertained by the officials,” Bawankule told reporters here.
The BJP leader said, “By August 15, fake birth certificates given to Bangladeshis will be cancelled,” adding that the copies of such certificates will have to be sent to the Department of Revenue and the Department of Health.
The announcement follows earlier allegations by BJP leader and former MP Kirit Somaiya, who claimed that 3,997 birth certificates had been issued to Bangladeshi nationals based on forged documents. This led to the suspension of two officials who were previously posted in Malegaon, Nashik district.
On Tuesday, Bawankule held a meeting with the state chief secretary, which was attended by district collectors via video conference. Somaiya too attended the meeting, sources said.
Meanwhile, Minister of State for Home Yogesh Kadam noted in March that the state government has significantly stepped up its crackdown on illegal Bangladeshi residents over the past four years.
According to official data, 109 individuals were deported in 2021, 77 in 2022, and 127 in 2023. So far in 2024, 716 illegal Bangladeshi nationals have been arrested and 202 deported.
