Born on August 1, 1954, in Belagavi, Karnataka, Abdul Karim Telgi hailed from a modest background. He grew up in the bylanes of poverty, but his aspirations knew no bounds. Telgi's early life was marked by ambition and cunning, traits that would later propel him into the world of crime.
Telgi started his journey into crime with small-scale counterfeit operations. He began by forging academic certificates and documents. These early attempts provided him with the foundation for what would become one of the most audacious scams in India's history.
Our story takes a dramatic turn when Telgi ventured into the lucrative world of stamp paper distribution. In the 1990s, he masterminded a scheme that involved the mass production of counterfeit stamp papers. These fake stamp papers were sold to unsuspecting individuals and institutions, including banks, corporations, and government departments.
Telgi's operation was nothing short of remarkable. He set up a vast network of agents and printing presses across India. These agents posed as government officials and manipulated the system to obtain genuine stamp paper gum and paper. Using this material, they churned out counterfeit stamp papers that were nearly indistinguishable from the real ones.
As the scam escalated, Telgi's illicit empire expanded rapidly. The counterfeit stamp papers were sold at a fraction of their face value, attracting a vast clientele that included property buyers, legal professionals, and businesses. Telgi's earnings from this illicit trade reached astronomical figures.
However, Telgi's success did not go unnoticed. The authorities launched a relentless pursuit, and Telgi found himself in a high-stakes cat-and-mouse game. He constantly changed his location and operated under various aliases to evade capture.
In 2001, Telgi's empire began to crumble when the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Karnataka Police, led by the determined officer, K. R. S. Srinivas, closed in on him. His arrest marked the beginning of the end for the stamp paper scam kingpin.
Abdul Karim Telgi's audacious stamp paper scam remains a testament to the extent to which a criminal mind can exploit the system. His life of crime ended on October 23, 2017, when he succumbed to multiple organ failure while serving a 30-year prison sentence. His legacy, however, endures in the annals of India's most audacious financial frauds.