CBI arrests Ramdev's aide Balkrishna

Yoga guru Ramdev's aide Balkrishna was on Friday arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation after a non-bailable warrant was issued against him by a special court in Dehradun in an alleged fake documents case.

Ramdev is scheduled to start an agitation against corruption and black money issue from August 9 at Ram Lila ground in the national capital.

CBI sources said Balkrishna was arrested by the agency after the special court in Dehradun issued a non-bailable warrant against him in connection with the case.

On July 10, the agency had filed a case against Balkrishna in a case relating to alleged submission of alleged fake and forged documents to obtain an Indian passport.

The agency as alleged that Balkrishna along with the then Principal of Sanskrit Mahavidayala, Khurja in Uttar Pradesh had conspired to issue the former fake educational certificates which he used to obtain passport.

The agency has booked the duo under Indian Penal Code sections related to criminal conspiracy, cheating and forgery, and imposed additional charge for the alleged violation of the Passport Act against Balkrishna.

"It was alleged in the complaint that the accused had wrongfully obtained an Indian passport. Enquiry established that the accused in connivance with some unknown persons  has furnished false information and forged documents to the Passport office at Bareilly (Uttar Pradesh) for getting an Indian passport issued," the CBI spokesperson had said.

The CBI had registered a case of cheating and criminal conspiracy against Balkrishna on July 23 last year for allegedly procuring fake degree and violating Section 12 of Indian Passport Act by furnishing fake documents to get an Indian passport.

The agency had said that its investigation had established that the accused, in connivance with the co-accused, had furnished false information and submitted fake and forged high school and graduation certificates to the passport authorities for obtaining the document.

The agency had also made a judicial request to the Nepal government asking it to ascertain Balkrishna's nationality but no response has come so far, CBI sources said here.

The decision to register the case against Balkrishna was taken after Sampurna Nand Sanskrit University denied ever having him on its rolls.

Registrar of the university Rajnish Shukla had told the CBI that Balkrishna's two degrees 'Purv Madhyma', a high school degree issued in 1991, and 'Shastri', a Sanskrit degree in 1996, don't figure in the varsity's records.

He had said the CBI had matched records which showed that the enrolment numbers mentioned in the fudged documents belong to a different student.