A Bangladeshi woman was arrested this week in Kolkata for residing in India using fake documents. The woman, named Shanta Paul, was working as a crew member of an airline company and was also a model, the police claimed after arresting her with forged documents.

According to NDTV, she entered India in 2023 from Bangladesh’s Barisal using a valid passport and then rented a flat in Kolkata through a property dealer. To sign the rent agreement, she submitted fake documents such as an Aadhaar card, PAN card, and Voter ID. Media reports also stated that Shanta married Sahik Mohammad Ashraf, a resident of Andhra Pradesh.

Shanta used fake documents to jointly rent properties in Kolkata with Ashraf, who works in the Merchant Navy. Media reports also stated that Shanta digitally married Sahik Mohammad Ashraf of Andhra Pradesh. According to the police, Shanta kept Ashraf’s passport in her possession with the help of a local agent for a while.

She represented Bangladesh in the Indo-Bangla Beauty Pageant in 2016 and went on to become Miss Asia Global in 2019. In recent years, she has also acted in Tamil and Bengali films and even signed an Odia film. She is currently in police custody till August 8. During the arrest and the search of her residence, the police recovered multiple identity documents, including an admit card for the Bangladeshi secondary examination, an airline ID issued in Bangladesh, and two Aadhaar cards. One of the Aadhaar cards was registered in Kolkata, and the other in Bardhaman.