Abdul Karim Telgi dies: The stamp paper scam that shook the nation
Abdul Karim Telgi, the kingpin of the multi-crore fake stamp paper scam that shook the country over a decade ago, died of multi-organ failure at a state-run hospital in Bengaluru on Thursday. He was battling for life for about a week.
The stamp paper scam
Acquiring a stamp paper licence in 1994, Telgi opened an office at Mint Road in Mumbai. He was said to have befriended several officials in the revenue ministry, stamp office and Nashik Security Press where stamp papers were printed.
Telgi was also accused of having used his political clout to get the machinery at the Nashik press declared as ‘junk’ only to buy it and setting it up at his office in Mumbai.
Official insight
The security and intelligence agencies had then put the size of the scam at a mind-boggling Rs 20,000 crore. However, some other estimates ranged from Rs 3,000 crore to Rs 30,000 crore.
The scam had affected the financial and other markets.
Humble beginnings
Hailing from Khanapur in Belagavi district in Karnataka, Telgi received his education in the local Sarvodaya Vidyalaya, an English-medium school, following which he had obtained a B.Com degree from a college in Belagavi. He was the son of a Railway employee and started off as a vegetable and fruit vendor in trains.
Later, he moved to Saudi Arabia. When he returned after seven years, he got into the counterfeit business.
Telgi passes away
Telgi, 56, was on life support system after being admitted to Victoria Hospital for meningitis, doctors said. He is survived by wife, daughter and son-in-law. | Readmore
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