Indian national held over possessing fake CNIC seeks bail from LHC

LAHORE: An Indian citizen arrested over possessing a fake identity paper of Pakistan- Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC)- from Gujranwala on Monday approached the Lahore High Court with a bail plea, ARY NEWS reported.

As per details, Mohammad Bilal aka Panjum Tiwari, who was living in Gujranwala, submitted a bail plea in the Lahore court, making Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) as a respondent in the case.

In his application filed with the top court of the Punjab province, the accused said that he was not involved in any criminal activity and therefore the court shall order his release on bail.

According to the FIR registered against him, the accused-living in Pakistan for a decade- was intercepted by the authorities in August 2019 and remained failed in proving his identity. During the probe, it was revealed that he was a resident of Indian city of Banaras.

“His real name revealed during the probe was Panjum Tiwari,” the report said adding that a co-accused in the case Kamran Masood facilitated him to shift to Pakistan.

An FIA official said after the arrest that Tiwari entered Pakistan illegally ten years ago and has been residing in the country ever since.

Amir Nawaz informed that Pancham Tiwari and Kamran, a resident of Gujranwala, became friends in 2009 after which Tiwari entered Pakistan illegally and managed to get a National Identity Card under a pseudonym.

The arrested Indian national was living in Gujranwala and had married Kamran’s sister. A fake identity of the accused was created with the help of NADRA officials, the FIR reads.