JustIn: Suspended MP Doctor Named Mastermind in Major Fake Currency Racket; ₹30 Lakh Seized

Suspended government doctor from Madhya Pradesh has been unmasked as the alleged kingpin behind a massive Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) operation. The racket surfaced dramatically in Maharashtra's Malegaon, where police nabbed two key suspects on October 30, including Mohd Zubair, an imam from Khandwa district, and his accomplice Nazir Akram Ansari from Burhanpur. Interrogations by a joint Special Investigation Team (SIT) from Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh police have pointed straight to Dr. Prateek Navlakhe, the absconding medic, as the supplier of the counterfeit cash, sending shockwaves through law enforcement circles.

The arrests began with a tip-off leading to the seizure of Rs 10 lakh in fake Rs 500 notes from the duo in Malegaon, quickly escalating into a cross-border probe. Zubair, who moonlights as a mosque imam, and Ansari were grilled extensively, revealing Navlakhe's pivotal role in funneling the bogus bills from Burhanpur. "The duo were just foot soldiers—couriers in a larger syndicate," a senior SIT officer disclosed, emphasizing that Navlakhe's capture is crucial to tracing the printing hub. Now on the run, the doctor is the prime target, with raids ongoing in MP to dismantle what police suspect is a nationwide web of distributors hiding in plain sight.

Navlakhe's criminal odyssey reads like a thriller, blending medical white-collar with outright felony. Suspended two years ago from Burhanpur district hospital after peddling Rs 25 lakh worth of equipment as scrap, he was also implicated in a Rs 24 lakh embezzlement scam via a sham bank account in a peon's name. Whispers of deeper vices—hawala dealings, cricket betting, and even human trafficking—have long swirled around him. His path crossed Zubair's in Khandwa jail, where both were inmates for separate fraud raps; that's allegedly where Navlakhe recruited the cleric into his FICN fold, forging an unholy alliance behind bars.

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The plot thickened on November 2 when MP police stormed Zubair's room in a Khandwa imambara, unearthing another Rs 20 lakh in high-quality fakes, pushing the total haul to Rs 30 lakh. Denominations mimic genuine Rs 500 notes so convincingly that experts warn they could flood markets undetected. Zubair himself carries a rap sheet of six prior cases involving robberies and investment swindles, painting a picture of desperation turned deadly. As the SIT widens its net, fears mount that more low-profile couriers—perhaps clerics, traders, or officials—are unwittingly or willfully propping up this economic sabotage.

With Navlakhe still at large, the manhunt intensifies across MP and Maharashtra, bolstered by Indore police teams converging on Malegaon for deeper interrogations. This bust not only highlights jailhouses as breeding grounds for crime but also exposes vulnerabilities in counterfeit detection amid rising economic threats. Authorities vow swift action to choke the supply chain, but until the doc is cuffed, the racket's full tentacles—potentially spanning states and syndicates—remain a ticking time bomb for India's financial stability.

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