Udupi: Two Arrested for Allegedly Using Forged Aadhaar in Bail Case

Udupi: Udupi Town police have arrested two men for allegedly producing a forged Aadhaar card before a court in connection with a bail proceeding, police said on Thursday.

The accused have been identified as Umar Farooq Bantwal and Nishanth Kumar of Mangaluru. They were arrested and produced before the court and are now in judicial custody.

The case came to light after Abbas, administrative officer of the Udupi District and Sessions Court, lodged a complaint on August 13.

According to the complaint, proceedings are pending before the Udupi District and Sessions Court in Special Case, arising from a crime, and Criminal Miscellaneous.

During the bail proceedings involving an accused named Noman, Farooq allegedly used the Aadhaar number belonging to Prashanth to prepare a forged Aadhaar card by replacing the original name and address with those of KT Mohammed.

The forged document was allegedly produced before the court on January 30, 2026, with the intention of impersonating another person and misleading the court. The complaint alleged that the act also amounted to cheating KT Mohammed and Prashanth, whose identity details were allegedly misused.

Udupi Town police subsequently registered a case under Sections 319(2), 336(3), 318(4), 229(1) and 340(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, along with other provisions cited in the complaint.

Following directions from senior officers, a special team was formed to investigate the case and trace the accused. The team was formed under the guidance of Udupi Town Police Inspector Mahesh Prasad P. and headed by Police Sub-Inspector (Investigation-2) Ratnakar K.

ASI Lokesh, Head Constables Santhosh and Jagannath Naik, and Police Constables Anand and Anandayya were part of the team. Personnel from Manipal police station, including Mallaiah Hiremath and Hemanth, and other Udupi Town police personnel assisted in the investigation.

Ends.