Illegal telephone exchange run from Bahrain busted in India

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

An Anti-Terrorist Squad in the Indian state of Gujarat has busted an illegal Voice over Internet Protocol telephone exchange run by a Keralite from Bahrain, reports PTI.

ATS said the exchange was run by Najib PP, a native of Kerala, with the help of aides remotely from Bahrain.

“Since video calls using applications such as WhatsApp are banned in Gulf countries, Indians living there have to pay as per IS rates to make international calls.

 Najib and his men make money by selling calling cards and sending commissions to his aides Shaid, Amit and Sohail here,” said Pinakin Parmar, Superintendent of Police, Gujarat ATS.

Shahid Saiyad was running the illegal call centre from a flat in Sakib Apartment in the Juhapura area.

The arrest followed a tip-off received.

Parmar said he was running the business using four SIM boxes that can hold multiple SIM cards, used as a VoIP gateway installation.

The call centre was started in the Juhapura area a year ago as directed by Najib and Sohail.

“This call centre converted incoming international calls into normal voice calls using VoIP technology.

This is illegal and against the rules set by the Department of Telecommunication,” Parmar said.

Parmar said they had arrested Saiyad on charges of cheating and criminal conspiracy.

The other two are absconding.

Najib, ATS found, was also running another call centre in the Mira Road area in Mumbai from Bahrain.

ATS and Mumbai police together raided a flat in ND Plaza No.3 on Tuesday and nabbed one Sajjad Saiyad with 115 SIM cards and other equipment.