A massive case of government revenue theft exceeding ₹100 crore has been uncovered in Uttar Pradesh’s Baghpat district, where an organized racket allegedly manipulated fake royalty (Inter State Transit Permit) documents for illegal financial gains. In a joint operation, the Special Task Force (STF) Meerut and police arrested five accused, while a wider network involving government employees has also come under scrutiny.
The case is linked to Niwada village, where investigators found that original royalty permits were allegedly tampered with and converted into forged documents. These manipulated permits were then used across multiple departments for mining material transportation approvals and payment clearances. According to officials, the network has been operating for nearly 10 years, causing massive financial losses to the state exchequer.
Registration Begins for FutureCrime Summit 2026, India’s Largest Cybercrime Conference
The STF team conducted a raid early Tuesday morning at a private establishment in Niwada village, leading to the arrest of five individuals, including Mandeep Tomar, a clerk from the Public Works Department (PWD), Baghpat. The other arrested accused have been identified as Naeem, Talib, Firoz, and Arif. During the operation, police recovered laptops, eight mobile phones, a WagonR car, cash, and several other digital and documentary pieces of evidence.
Investigators revealed that the scam was not limited to a single district but extended across at least eight districts in Uttar Pradesh. Around 20 clerks from departments such as municipal corporations and the Public Works Department in Ghaziabad, Noida, Baghpat, Sambhal, Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, and Saharanpur are suspected to be involved. WhatsApp chats recovered from the accused’s mobile phones reportedly confirm coordination between clerks and operators regarding alterations in royalty dates and document details.
During interrogation, it emerged that the racket began nearly a decade ago through local connections, which later expanded into a wider interstate network involving handlers from Haryana and Agra. Original royalty permits were shared digitally through WhatsApp, after which they were modified and reused as valid documents in different districts to facilitate illegal payments and approvals.
Officials stated that a fixed commission system was operating within the network. A rate of ₹20 per cubic meter was allegedly charged, out of which ₹15 per cubic meter was passed on to the main operators, while the remaining amount was distributed among local participants. This structured sharing model helped the syndicate function as a well-organized financial crime network.
Authorities further noted that the forged documents were used to manipulate mining transport records and secure wrongful bill clearances. This led to systematic misuse of government funds over several years, without immediate detection due to the complexity of document circulation and departmental coordination gaps.
The STF is now expanding its investigation to identify additional members of the network and trace associated financial assets. Digital evidence, bank transactions, and communication records are being closely analyzed to uncover the complete money trail.
Following the arrests, panic has spread across revenue and mining departments, as officials fear further exposure of administrative involvement. Police officials have confirmed that interrogation of the arrested accused is ongoing, and more arrests are likely as the investigation progresses.
Authorities believe this could be one of the largest fake royalty scams in the state, involving a deeply entrenched syndicate that systematically exploited government systems to cause long-term financial damage.
