Kolkata Police have arrested four people from Burrabazar and Howrah for allegedly preparing fake currency bundles designed to appear as consignments worth ₹20 lakh, with genuine ₹500 notes placed only at the top and bottom and white paper packed in between.
The first two arrests were made in the Burrabazar area after police received information on October 27 about two suspicious men carrying bundles of suspected fake currency near the crossing of Strand Road and Mirbahar Ghat Street. The accused were identified as Vijaypal Tanwar, also known as Arvind, 23, and Shiva Thapa, 24.
Police said a search of Vijaypal’s backpack led to the recovery of four bundles. Each bundle carried a fake label bearing the name of a private bank and stating that it contained ₹5 lakh. Together, the labels indicated a total value of ₹20 lakh.
When the bundles were opened, investigators found that each contained one genuine ₹500 note at the top and another at the bottom. The remaining 998 pieces in each bundle were white paper cut to the size of currency notes. Across the four bundles, police said they recovered only eight genuine ₹500 notes, worth ₹4,000 in total.
The police seized and sealed the bundles after completing the legal process and recording the procedure on video. Copies of the seizure list were handed to the accused, and their family members were informed after the arrests. A case was registered at Burrabazar police station on October 27 under Sections 318(4), 336(3), 340(2), 112, 61(2) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The charges include cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy.
During the investigation, police questioned the two men arrested in Burrabazar and traced two more alleged members of the group to Howrah. Investigators subsequently arrested Sunilkumar Verma, 47, and Gopal Gujjar, 24, from the Howrah area.
Police said a printer, a paper ream cutter, two boxes of white bond paper and other equipment allegedly used to prepare the fake bundles were recovered from the four accused. The seizure indicates that the bundles were being assembled to imitate packaged banknote consignments rather than to circulate individual counterfeit notes, although the police investigation is continuing.
The case has brought together two distinct urban settings: Burrabazar, one of Kolkata’s major wholesale and commercial districts, where such bundles could be presented to traders, and Howrah, where police traced alleged members and recovered production equipment. Investigators are now examining how widely the suspected network extended and whether more people were involved in the scheme.
