Fake Aadhaar, real access: how a Bangladeshi national worked at India’s Naval Academy

Biplob Soren worked in the laundry section of the Indian Naval Academy at Ezhimala for nearly a year using a forged Aadhaar card, part of a wider crackdown that has seen six Bangladeshi nationals arrested in Kannur district in four days

PGurus Newsdesk

September 19, 2026

Biplob Soren, a 32-year-old Bangladeshi national, was arrested after working in the laundry section of the Indian Naval Academy at Ezhimala for nearly a year using a forged Aadhaar card

Police have not disclosed how he secured the job or confirmed whether his presence posed any specific security concern

A 32-year-old Bangladeshi national, identified as Biplob Soren, was arrested on Friday after allegedly working as a contract employee at the Indian Naval Academy (INA) in Ezhimala, Kerala, for nearly a year while concealing his nationality using forged Indian documents. Soren, who claimed to be the son of one Anil Soren from Nabagram, Murshidabad, West Bengal, was employed in the academy’s laundry section under an assumed Indian identity.

How He Was Caught

Naval authorities grew suspicious of Soren’s behaviour and placed him under observation before a detailed examination of his mobile phone allegedly turned up information and documents indicating he was, in fact, a Bangladeshi citizen. He had reportedly submitted a forged Aadhaar card and a Police Clearance Certificate to secure the job. He was handed over to Payyannur Police around 8:15 pm on Friday, with Sub-Inspector Shuhaib carrying out the arrest on the instructions of Circle Inspector Mahesh K Nair, and reports indicate the operation followed confidential inputs from the Intelligence Bureau.

What Investigators Are Still Trying To Establish

Police have not disclosed exactly what work Soren was doing at the academy beyond the laundry section, nor have they detailed precisely how he secured the temporary position or obtained the forged documents in the first place. Authorities have also not commented on whether his presence at the military training establishment posed any specific security concern, though the case has understandably raised questions about verification protocols for contract staff at sensitive defence installations, and investigators are examining whether lapses occurred in the screening process used by the contractors or agencies that recruited him.

Part Of A Wider Pattern In Kannur

Soren’s arrest is the sixth involving a Bangladeshi national in Kannur district in the span of four days. Police had earlier arrested Selina Akter, working at a spa near Kannur railway station, based on information from a central intelligence agency, and subsequently arrested four more women — Nazma Akter, Taslima Khatun, Moyna Khatun and Nasri Bheebi — from a rented apartment after intelligence pointed to their presence there. Investigators found the women had allegedly obtained Aadhaar cards after telling officials the documents were procured in Assam before they travelled to Kerala for work. Police are now examining whether an organised network is involved in bringing Bangladeshi nationals into Kerala and arranging both forged documents and employment for them.

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