HVK Archives: Baptist priest held in fake currency racket
Baptist priest held in fake currency racket - Manoj Anand
The Asian Age
()
January 29, 1999
Title: Baptist priest held in fake currency racket
Author: The Asian Age
Publication: Manoj Anand
Date: January 29, 1999
A Baptist priest posted as secretary of Diphupan church in
Nagaland was arrested recently by the Guwahati police for his
involvement in a fake currency racket.
Bendeng Temjen Jamir, secretary of the Diphupan Baptist mission,
was arrested on charges of illegally holding counterfeit
currencies in denominations of Rs 500.
The first information report of the city police, which was
tightlipped about the arrest of the Baptist priest, said that
acting on a tip-off they intercepted Jamir in front of Paltan
Bazar daily market on December 26 and on conducting a search,
eight Rs 500 counterfeit currency notes were recovered from his
possession.
On interrogation, he disclosed that another lot of counterfeit
currency was kept hidden in his bag at a guest house of the
Confederation of Baptist Church in Northeast India, where he was
staying.
Accordingly, Jamir led a police team to the guest house at
Panbazar and, during the search, another lot of counterfeit
currencies of the same denomination was recovered.
The priest also confessed to the police that he brought the
counterfeit currency notes from Nagaland for using it as genuine
in Guwahati city. In this regard, the city police also lodged a
case (No. 729198) under Section 489 (B) of the Indian Penal Code
and remanded the priest to judicial custody. He was granted
bail on Monday, after spending a month in police and judicial
custody.
Meanwhile, the police has started investigations in consultation
with its counterparts in Nagaland to unearth the nexus operating
in the region. The city superintendent of police, Mr Bhaskar
Jyoti Mahanta, however, said that the priest had confessed that
he received the counterfeit currencies in his monthly salary.
Police sources said they have information about the involvement
of a church in the fake currency racket in Nagaon district of
Assam and that the matter is still under investigation. State
police sources probing the racket refused to name the church in
Nagaon, fearing it may hamper investigations. The fake currency
racket in the Northeast has also affected business adversely
and, as a result, many leading business firms, particularly from
Nagaland and Manipur, have lost faith in the cash market.
Traders prefer to transact through banks instead of accepting
cash from business houses from these states.
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