Hard to buy, but true. The Bihar government has granted a Pakistan national a ration card. He has a voter identity card, too.
The person in question exceeded his stay in India. But instead of being pulled he was "awarded" with a ration card as a Phulwarisharif resident in 2005. And subsequently he made his way to the voters' roll.
The fact came to light only after Mahboob Imam (52) wrote to the Union home ministry in 2007 applying for Indian citizenship.
The home ministry found "fault" with his application and asked the Bihar government to look into the matter. He had earlier applied for Indian citizenship in 1983.
Home ministry demanded Imam's name be immediately struck off from the ration card and voters' list.
Imam has been staying with his family here and ekes out a living running petty businesses.
In his letter to the home ministry, Imam had written that he was born in Phulwarisharif and had moved to Pakistan in 1963 leaving behind his family here.
He had been coming to Bihar at regular intervals as a Pakistan citizen before he finally started living at Phulwarisharif since 2002.
Imam had settled in Karachi and became a Pakistan citizen. He had come to Phulwarisharif in 2002, too.
