Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested two accused including Office Assistant/ Verification Officer working at Passport Seva Kendra (PSK), Lower Parel Mumbai and an agent (private person) in a case related to issuing passports based on fake documents in lieu of bribe.

A case was registered by CBI against Office Assistant/VO, PSK, Lower Parel, Mumbai and other private persons working as passport agents. It was alleged in FIR that during the years 2023-2024, said accused public servant entered a criminal conspiracy with other private persons and in furtherance of the said criminal conspiracy, he has been obtaining undue advantage for doing passport related work.

In furtherance of the conspiracy with agent (private person) and other unknown persons, accused public servant has got issued fake passports of unknown applicants based on forged documents.

It was further revealed that unknown seven persons purporting as applicants had submitted forged documents such as Aadhar card copy, Pan card copy, Bank Account Statement and Birth Certificates as their address and identity proofs, in the Passport Office. During investigation, all the documents provided by them have also been found to be forged.

Further, communications chats between accused public servant and agent (private person) revealed discussion about payment of undue advantage concerning these fake passport applicants.

Investigation also revealed that mobile numbers provided by applicants in the passport applications are not in service. The Police Verification reports carried out after issuance of those passports under Tatkaal Scheme (which were earlier waived of during issuance of passports) have been found to be adverse, as addresses given on passport applications were fake.

As accused were evasive and did not cooperate during investigation. Both the accused were arrested. They were produced before Special CBI Court, Mumbai and have been sent to police custody for 05 days i.e. till 02.6.2025.

Investigation is continuing.

Panama City, May 28: Jose Raul Mulino Quintero, the President of Panama and a member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), has expressed “support for India’s fight against terrorism,” Congress MP Sashi Tharoor said after a delegation of members of Parliament met him.

At their “constructive and productive” meeting in the Presidential Palace, Mulino “expressed his understanding and support for India’s fight against terrorism,” Tharoor, who heads the delegation, said in a post on X on Wednesday (local time).

Panama’s Foreign Minister Javier Martinez-Acha Vasquez, who hosted a lunch for the delegation, was at the meeting with the President along with several senior officials.

Martinez-Acha “extended full support understanding of Panama on terrorism for India,” Taranjit Singh Sandhu, a former ambassador to the US who is accompanying the delegation, said in an X post.

They were joined by Vice-Minister Carlos Hoyos, as well as two members of Panama’s National Assembly, which was “a tribute to the regard in which India is held here,” Tharoor said.

During the meeting, Tharoor passed around pictures of Pakistani officials at the funeral of Hafiz Abdur Rauf, a senior leader of the Lashkar-e-Taiba and a designated a terrorist by the United Nations Sanctions Committee.

“There is no greater proof of official complicity” of Pakistan with terrorism, he told them.

Pakistan military’s top brass, including Lt Gen Fayyaz Hussain Shah and Maj Gen Rao Imran, and Punjab Police Inspector General Usman Anwar were among those who attended the funerals of Rauf and other terrorists killed in the Operation Sindoor hits on terrorism centres.

The parliamentary delegation was visiting this influential Central American country that is an elected member of the UN Security Council to make clear India’s policy of zero-tolerance for terrorism in the aftermath of the religiously motivated massacre of 26 people at Pahalgam by Pakistan-linked terrorists.

India launched Operation Sindoor to hit the infrastructure of terrorism in Pakistan and the areas of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

Islamabad launched attacks on targets in India, including temples, gurdwaras, and a convent, escalating the conflict.

Reflecting a broad national consensus on the issue, the delegation included parliamentarians from across party lines Shambhavi of the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), Sarfaraz Ahmad of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, Milind Murli Deora of the Shiv Sena, and BJP leaders Shashank Mani Tripathi, Bhubaneswar Kalita, and Tejasvi Surya, along with GM Harish Balayogi of the Telugu Desam Party.

The delegation, which has visited New York and Guyana, is to visit Colombia and Brazil and head to Washington in the quest to rally support for India against terrorism.

Brussels, May 29: The European Union (EU) and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have formally launched negotiations for a bilateral Free Trade Agreement (FTA), marking a potential breakthrough towards the EU’s first comprehensive trade deal in the Gulf region, said the European Commission.

This initiative also aims to expand further the EU’s global trade network, which currently comprises 44 agreements with 76 countries, said the Commission on Wednesday.

According to a press release of the Commission, Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maros Sefcovic and UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi met in Dubai to reaffirm their shared vision for the agreement and agree on a roadmap, with substantive work expected to begin as early as June.

The first meetings of negotiating teams will focus on reducing tariffs on goods and facilitating services, digital trade and investment flows media reports.

Talks will also explore ways to boost trade in strategic sectors, such as renewable energy, green hydrogen and critical raw materials.

Sefcovic emphasized that a bilateral FTA would unlock “tremendous business opportunities” for both European and Emirati enterprises, while also bolstering the EU’s regional engagement with Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen hailed the launch of the talks as a “significant milestone,” noting that the agreement would deepen EU-Gulf ties, create new opportunities for European businesses, and strengthen cooperation in key areas such as renewable energy and digital technologies.

To address the uncertainty of US trade policy, the EU is strengthening cooperation with other economies to promote trade diversification and reduce its reliance on the United States.

Last Friday, US President Donald Trump announced that he is “recommending a straight 50 per cent Tariff on the EU, starting on June 1, 2025.” But after a phone call with von der Leyen on Sunday, he agreed to postpone the planned tariff increase until July 9. On Tuesday, Trump welcomed the EU’s decision to proceed with negotiations, calling it a positive step, but he again warned that he would enforce trade measures if a deal is not reached.