Stealing login ID and password from City Ration Office: Investigation into fake ration card production to be handed over to Vigilance

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Food Minister GR Anil has written to the Chief Minister seeking a vigilance investigation into the hacking of the Food Department's online ration card management system to produce and distribute fake priority cards.

The case alleges that the fake ration cards were made by stealing the login ID and password of the clerk and ration inspector of the Thiruvananthapuram City Ration Office (South). However, the vigilance investigation was requested because the fraud was not confined to a single office. The internal vigilance wing of the food department is also investigating.

The police have not found the main accused in the case. The Vanchiyoor police have arrested Sahad Khan (32), a ration licensee in Beemapalli, and Haseeb Khan (34), who runs an online service centre. Licensee Sahad Khan was arrested for taking money from people with blue and white cards by promising to find and organise people who needed pink cards. Some of the applications submitted by Sahad Khan were uploaded on the site by Haseeb Khan, who runs a public service centre. Haseeb told the police that he uploaded 5 to 10 applications. 146 fake priority cards were found.