Local police and administration of a village in the Etah district of Uttar Pradesh recently discovered that a 65-year-old Pakistani woman at the helm of affairs of the village panchayat as its interim head, Times of India reports. Bano Begum, a Karachi resident, visited a relative’s house in Etah 35 years ago. She has been staying in the district on a long-term visa and even married an Indian local named Akhtar Ali.Begum applied for Indian citizenship on numerous occasions and now a probe has been ordered on how she secured the Aadhaar, Voter ID and other documents despite being on a long-term visa.
Bano got elected as a member of the Guadau gram panchayat in the 2015 local body polls. She took over as the interim pradhan upon the recommendation of the village committee as Shehnaz Begum, who held the post previously, passed away on 9 January this year.Quwaidan Khan, a fellow villager, filed a complaint that Bano is a Pakistani national and thus threw light on this issue. Village secretary Dhyanpal Singh had recommended Bano’s appointment as the interim pradhan and he has been subsequently removed from his post. District Panchayati Raj Officer (DPRO) Alok Priyadarshini apprised Etah’s district magistrate (DM) Sukhlal Bharti of this matter.The DM has ordered an investigation and FIR into this case as he said, “Orders have been issued to investigate how she managed to get an Aadhaar card and other documents for contesting election to become gram panchayat member. Strict action will be taken against those found guilty of helping her.”DPRO Priyadarshini mentioned, “Investigation on the basis of a complaint received against Bano Begum found that she is a Pakistan national. She got an Aadhaar card and voter ID made on her name by fraudulent means.”