Rachakonda police bust fingerprint racket to infiltrate people into Kuwait

HYDERABAD: Rachakonda police on Thursday arrested four people on Thursday for illegal finger print surgery in order to smuggle candidates to Kuwait for work. They also seized medical kits used for surgeries and incriminating material from the accused.

According to credible information, the Special Operations Team, Malkajgiri Zone Team, and Ghatkesar Police conducted a joint operation on August 29, 2022, and four people—Gajjalakondugari Naga Muneswar Reddy, Sagabala Venkat Ramana, Bovilla Shiva Shankar Reddy, and Rendla Rama Krishna Reddy—who came from Kadapa and were staying at the Happy Residency Oyo Room, Annojiguda—performed fingerprinting surgery on unidentified people in Ghatkesar.

The main accused, Gajjalakondugari Naga Muneswar Reddy who was born in Kadapa and obtained his Certificate in Radiological Analysis in Tirupathi in 2007. Later, he worked as a radiographer at Krishna Diagnostics in Tirupathi, where he met his classmate, the second accused, an anaesthesia technician, Sagabala Venkata Ramana. Naga Muneshwar Reddy eventually connected with someone in Kadapa, who informed him that he was working in Kuwait and had been deported to India by Kuwait authorities for overstaying his visa.

He returned to Kuwait after having his fingers operated on in Sri Lanka. When Naga Muneshwar Reddy learned about the surgery, he devised a plan with his friend Sagabala Venkata Ramana, the anaesthesia technician, to perform it in order to increase their income. Both Muneshewar Reddy and contacted someone in Rajasthan, and both travelled to Rajasthan to perform surgeries on two patients for Rs. 25,000 each. They later went on to perform surgeries and earn approximately Rs. 150,000. Later, the duo charged Rs.25,000 each for three surgeries they performed in their village.

The deported citizens allegedly started getting illicit fingertip operations from the accused, according to Rachakonda police. The main suspects removed the top layer of the fingertip, took off some tissue, and then stitched it back together using supplies from their medical bag. The finger print patterns typically change slightly after a month or two as the wound heals.

In order to update their finger prints at the Aadhar centre, those who had recently returned from Kuwait took advantage of the basic technology used by Kuwait's immigration department to change their addresses and apply for new ones while updating their finger prints there.

A case has been registered at the Ghatkesar Police Station in accordance with section Cr. No. 675/2022, U/s. 420, 467, 468, 472, 475, 109 IPC R/W 120(b) IPC, and SEC.40, 42 of the Adhar Act of 2016.