A Pune MTech job aspirant has been charged with cheating and forgery after he was allegedly caught travelling with an AI-made fake PMPML one-day bus pass, exposing a new fraud challenge for the city’s public bus network. The incident occurred on Friday after the man boarded a bus at Hadapsar bus stand.
According to Hadapsar police, PMPML ticket inspector Sanjay Adhalge, 56, lodged the complaint after a conductor became suspicious of the printed pass. The conductor reportedly noticed that the paper’s feel and quality did not match a genuine pass and alerted staff.
Police said the passenger claimed that he had purchased the one-day pass through the PMPML app. He was subsequently taken to the PMPML bus stand for questioning, where the alleged forgery came to light, police said.
Hadapsar police senior inspector Hemant Patil said the accused had completed an MTech course and was looking for a job in Pune. “He is well aware of AI. He is looking for a job in the city and wanted to avoid paying fares while travelling. So he created a pass using AI, printed a physical copy of it,” Patil said.
Police further alleged that the man uploaded an image of an old pass to an AI tool and instructed it to replicate the ink colour, font and signatures of PMPML officials. The case has been registered on the basis of the complaint by Adhalge.
Patil said police suspected that the accused may have used fake passes on earlier occasions as well. The supplied report does not specify the number of earlier journeys under investigation or whether any additional forged passes have been recovered. The police case remains focused on the alleged creation and use of the counterfeit PMPML pass.
