Belagavi: Fake note racket busted, two held

Belagavi: Following an alert from the National Investigating Agency (NIA), Mumbai branch, the Belagavi police arrested two people on charges of printing and distributing fake currency notes and seized Rs 82,000 in fake notes at Chikkodi on Wednesday. A police team raided the residence of Ashok Mahadev Kumbar of Chikkodi and found the counterfeit tender.  The police arrested Kumbar and his associate Rajendra Bapu Patil Desai of Raibag. The Belagavi police team is coordinating with the teams from Vijayapura to investigate the case and Sudheer Kumar Reddy, SP, Belagavi, is overseeing the operation.  

According to the police, the incident came to light after Dalim Mia of Malda in West Bengal, who was smuggling fake currency from Kolkata to Maharashtra and Karnataka was arrested in Pune recently and information was obtained from him. It was followed by alerts sent from NIA officials to authorities in Karnataka and Maharashtra.  

The NIA reportedly informed Belagavi police that the seized notes are of good quality and it is difficult for the common man to detect whether it is counterfeit or genuine.